


Skein | The Shadow Games

by UsagiSquared



Series: Skein [1]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, Gender or Sex Swap, Seto's a woman in other words, Shadow Games Arc
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-06
Updated: 2018-08-16
Packaged: 2019-06-22 22:05:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 120,781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15591723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UsagiSquared/pseuds/UsagiSquared
Summary: Formerly known as 'Skin' on FF.Net - Covers the Shadow Games Arc of the fanfic. | He wasn't sure what he expected after refusing Seto Kaiba's bargain, but it wasn't meeting their brother, and it certainly wasn't being hired by that brother a few nights later.And it definitely wasn't the revelation that Seto Kaiba was a woman in disguise.





	1. Author's Statement

It's been a long time coming- but as you can see, _I am not dead_. Life and many other things went on but I won't bore you with the details- what's important, is that I'm not only uploading my old fic here on Ao3, but will hopefully be updating as well.

 

The downside to this is that I'm trying to not only do minor editing as I re-upload, but split up longer chapters into pieces...and even divide the fic as a whole into arcs. Thanks to Ao3's 'Series' option, this should make it a lot easier to take the entire fanfic in.

 

That said- certain notes from the version on FF.net will be drastically changed- trivia and glossary matters will likely remain, as will art if links still apply, but polls and music and similar will NOT remain. These notes often added really massive chunks to the chapters after all, so cutting that down actually helps a fair bit with things.

 

Re-uploading will come in chunks; in this case, the Shadow Games will cover the first 19 chapters (+prologue) of Skin- now repackaged as 'Skein', since the original title doesn't really suit it.

 

As it is- I do hope that people enjoy this, both as old readers coming back and new ones as well!

 


	2. Prologue | The Little Things

She could remember the day that her mother died.

 

She was four- almost five- and for a while she didn't understand what it meant. She asked her father, 'Where is she?'. She asked, 'Why isn't she here to see the new baby?'

 

It took a long time, but eventually she learned what it meant. Her mother was gone, and she would never see her again. It was upsetting of course- it meant an emptiness, a void in certain activities and things that she had never been without. But in a strange way it was okay, because in her place there was Mokuba.

 

After her mother died, her father took her place. And although he had work as well he did a good job at raising them. He never seemed to get over the loss, however. He didn't completely understand how to go about raising Mokuba either, not when all he knew was what little her mother taught while raising their eldest child. He could only do so much, but in the end she determined that her father was an incredible person...right until his final moments.

 

She remembers the day her father died. She was eight years old.

 

And it was her fault.  
  
It had been Christmas. They erected a massive tree in the middle of the city, a masterpiece of metal and plastic that was decorated with hundreds of thousands of electric lights and ornaments. Mokuba had been excited- he still didn't understand what Christmas was, and frankly neither did she, but it was a happy holiday and a loud one at that so they both looked forward to it.

 

They'd gotten separated from their father. Lost- and when she finally found him, she thought of nothing but getting back to him with Mokuba in her arms.

 

So she didn't see the truck. She didn't hear the horn. But she felt her father's arms as he charged at them, shielding his children from harm. She heard him tell her, beg to her, to look after her brother as he succumbed to the injuries received.

 

Mokuba had a few bruises. She herself had roadrash across her back. But her father had his spine and ribs shattered by the force of the truck and the tires that ran across his lower body when he pushed them from harms way.

 

She remembers the day he was cremated.

 

They were dressed as formally as they could, and Mokuba didn't stop asking questions. He wanted to know why Dad was 'sleeping'. He wanted to know why he was being put into the strange metal room, and why they were setting his box on fire. He didn't know how he would get out, or how he would be 'okay'.

 

He didn't know what 'dead' meant yet.

 

They had never known their aunt.

 

Their father's sister was british, just as he had been. She lived in Japan as a housewife to a former soldier and now buisnessman as many women did, and as many were expected to do. Their cousins were quite a lot like her. And their uncle was quite a lot like their cousins.  
  
And all of them disliked them, in any way at all. To them, she was considered quiet. A 'suck up' when she tried to keep her brother from trouble. Mokuba in the meantime was ridiculed for his hair, teased for its length, for the mess of it, and for how 'girly' it made him look to them. They were ignored in the house, but not because they didn't know what to do with them.  
  
They simply didn't care that they were there.  
  
It took six months, and they had sorted out the inheritance from their father. During that time the most eventful thing to occur was her own hair being chopped near off after one of her cousins had stuck it there as a joke, when she'd prevented them from doing it to her brother instead. She had done the cutting herself- and not more than a day later, they were told to pack their things.

 

They would be leaving to go to the orphanage in the morning.

 

She could remember, that evening, the discussion that they had. Bitter, and cold, and filled with distant formality for those who wanted nothing to do with the other. She could remember learning how easy it would be, for children to be separated in the system they were about to enter. How the building itself would separate them as it was, if certain matters were not in place. So as her last request to the people who called themselves their 'family', she begged them for just one thing...

 

And of all the requests she had ever made, it was the only thing they granted.

 

She never saw them again.

 

She could remember a movie she watched with her father, before their mother had died. She wasn't supposed to watch it- but she had, and she remembered in particular one line. 'The first day is the hardest.' She didn't know if it was true- but she told her brother anyway. She told him that he needed to be strong, but that he mustn't worry all the same. She would protect him. He had asked her then, what their mother looked like- and she confessed that she didn't remember, but that he likely had her eyes. He asked if she was nice. What she would have done, if she was there, and her own answer was that she didn't know.

 

But that was okay. Because even without them there, she was going to be the 'father', she explained. Mokuba had replied that 'dads' were 'big strong men' and not little girls, before sticking his tongue out at her. She didn't have the heart to explain things, at that point. He never said anything about it after that as it was, which made things easier.

 

Things changed when she turned ten.

 

When the CEO of Kaiba Corporation visited the orphanage. She had made her promise to Mokuba by then- her dream of a theme park, open for all the children like them to go to, free of charge for whatever they liked. And this, she determined, would be their change. At that life. At that freedom. She made a bet for them to have a real home. She cheated to win, and though she was certain he realized he didn't care.

 

She shouldn't have taken that bet.

 

He took them in, as she had asked. And at the start, she had determined that she would tell him everything later in the year. Everything he could want to know about her, and her brother, everything he didn't know, and that the orphanage didn't know.

 

But Gozaburo Kaiba did not want to know about them. He wanted to know if she was smart. If she could handle the 'stresses' of work, and if she would be good enough to succeed his position in the company. It did not take long, before she realized she could not tell him the truth. That he didn't want the truth- or at least what the truth was. He wanted someone who would grow into a man capable of handling anything thrown at them, and anything he threw at them.

 

And she was strong. Stronger than he thought, perhaps- and perhaps even too strong, she occasionally thought. Perhaps if she had been more 'weak' like Mokuba was, she would have done things differently...but she wasn't.

 

She was as stubborn as the rapids within both of her names, crashing onward regardless of circumstance.

 

She could remember finally reaching puberty, and refusing to speak to Gozaburo out of sheer spite. The maids that he had hired however, noticed quickly. They pulled her aside to question what they saw the signs of, and in those moments she learned the value of making connections. Really learned.

 

It was the first time she went behind her father's back, promising each of the hired help involved a 'bonus' once she took hold of the company.

 

It did not hide everything however. At fourteen she was pulled aside by her 'father' after a sixteen hour tutoring session to speak about her 'growth'. It was perhaps the closest thing to care she had seen from him- if it could be considered care at all. From the context of their conversation, the maids had not spoken to him. But he had noticed- her voice was still very high. It would always be- this she knew, but of course Gozaburo did not, and did not expect that to be the case. He explained to her that day that he had done some research. Research on young men who grew up slim, even feminine, due to some 'imbalance' of hormones or similar. She knew there was nothing wrong with herself.

 

Gozaburo did not. As a result of his self-made conclusions however, he did the unthinkable. He cancelled a day of tutoring, and asked the tutors to work on redeveloping their curriculum for her. And in the weeks following, she was instead trained in vocal arts. He would have her hide that voice- become something commanding, stern, powerful in his words. It was all she worked on for days on end, to the point where for a time she could not speak at all.

 

Even Gozaburo knew not to push too far, in that case. So for the time being he issued a challenge. A challenge to create something new- something useful, something unheard of. She succeeded. A program for virtual reality software, to be used for games.

 

And her 'father' desired it for all of the wrong things. She had known the company dealt in arms and machinery. She had hoped to change it one day- one of the few things she clung to from her time as a child perhaps. He would not listen, however- so she hid it, and when he confronted her refused to reveal the location of the data.

 

She was sent away from his sight, and for the next week her lessons doubled. It was the last day she referred to him as 'father'. It was the first day she realized she could not wait for things to change, and so after passing Gozaburo's test upon her fifteenth birthday, she created a plan.

 

She contacted each member of the board of directors- the 'Big Five' as it were- and she offered them a deal. And at the age of fifteen, the cards fell into place perfectly. Too perfectly, perhaps...  
  
She remembers watching the man she had overthrown as he crashed through the glass of the building's topmost floor, to fall to his death. His final words echoing in her ears- 'one last lesson', he had said. “This is what happens to losers”.

 

Suicide.  
  
Death.  
  
Something along those lines, she supposed. She never attended the funeral however, because as her brother convinced her to have them registered in local schools for the sake of some semblance of a 'normal life', it didn't matter. Gozaburo was dead. He was gone forever, and they would never see him again.

 

And neither he, nor anyone else beyond her reach, would ever know...just what the truth was.

 


	3. Chapter 1 | The Assignment

_-SMACK-_  
  
The ball flew over the net in the school yard, those on the other side merely watching as it sailed past the boundary as they groaned.

 

"Mannnn," one of the students, a seeming foreigner given his blond hair, was particularly loud. "Again?" The others on his team turned as the tall, if not currently the tallest student on the field merely granted them a small smirk, having won for their side yet again with that same move. One of the other students scowled at the cold and superior gesture, gritting their teeth as the blond continued his complaining. "How the hell do we beat someone half a foot taller than us, I mean, look at his reach..."

 

The student he was talking about merely rolled his eyes as the opposite team continued to grumble among themselves. After all the teen appeared to think to himself, it wasn't as though they had been outmatched- the game had been tied for most of the class, and it very much felt like that single move had won each game. As the bell rang, the classmate in question contented themselves with heading to the change room, another smug smirk on his face flashed in the blond's direction and leaving the sour expressions of a majority of his classmates to fester. 'Seto Kaiba' always got the last word after all, be it in a meeting or simply the school's gym class. Team sports, as much as he quite obviously loathed them, were not exception.

 

That did not change Seto's surprised when, moments after they'd filed into the change rooms, the same blond that had cried out during the class approached him with a slightly forced look of cheer. The shorter one beside him Seto noted, had a genuine expression of optimism in contrast to his friend's forced grin, and for a brief moment they wondered just what was running through their heads. For a few seconds, the two merely stood there, coming dangerously close to receiving an aggravated 'move it' for their troubles. Eventually it was the shorter (What was his name... 'Mutou'? Something like that) who spoke first.

 

"That was a good game," he said with a smile, looking up from his almost two-feet-shorter position. "Do you have any tips? It's a new sport for the class, but you seemed really good at it already!"

 

The blond nodded, smile seeming somewhat less forced now that his friend had spoken up. "Yea, I mean... You killed us out there!" Hnn... Yes... Who was this one again? He narrowed his eyes with thought, and the name came quickly. Right. 'Jonouchi'. The delinquent that managed to never miss a class. However that worked.

 

Seto scoffed, going back to grabbing his clothes. "If you want to succeed in something as menial as a gym class game," he said rather bluntly, "I suggest either doing something other than playing around inside all the time, or just facing up to the fact that half-pints like you won't do well in sports like volleyball." The boy he addressed froze, looking slightly taken aback for a moment before watching the teen shove past. "Now...If you excuse me, I'd rather not change in a room full of sore losers."

 

Regardless of if that was the reason, a majority of the boys in the room were indeed sending glares at Kaiba from afar. Though it was questionable that this gesture had anything to do with the fact that they lost, as even the people who had been on Kaiba's team were sending him those looks. As the teen left, Yugi looked down at the floor with an odd look on his face, decidedly upset about the blunt rejection before his friend patted him on the shoulder.

 

"Ahhh don' worry about it Yug'. We should've figured that he'd be a jerk in person if he was a jerk in class."

 

While the taller appeared to get over it well enough however his friend merely sighed, shaking his head. "Yea... I guess..."

 

* * *

 

That would be the first time they spoke to Seto Kaiba. It would be two days later that they would meet again, in the game shop Yugi's grandfather owned. There, where they would find out about Kaiba's large interest in Duel Monsters cards- along with the fact that yes, outside of school, he was still a jerk. And shortly after that...

 

Kaiba wouldn't be seen in class for two days, a rare occurrence that for once had even the teachers confused. He supposed that it was then, when Kaiba returned only to retain 'neutral' actions rather than acting like the usual jackass he was. It was then, that he acknowledged his curiosity toward the other. Though he decided it had a bit to do with the project he'd been assigned in Japanese for missing those few days of class before as well.

 

Katsuya, not that anyone called him by his given name, balked at the paper he was given before looking at the teacher over the pages. "Awww... Are you serious?" The man merely frowned, crossing his arms with a stern nod.

 

"Quite frankly Jonouchi-kun, you should be glad I haven't simply taken the marks off. This make-up assignment is only because you attended all my classes." His frown became more of an unimpressed, blank and half-lidded stare as his student groaned, and he continued. "Though I do often wonder how much you pay attention, so if you're really so intent on throwing this assignment away..."

 

Katsuya quickly paled, clutching the papers and rubric close with a shout. "Ah! 'M fine! Really, I'll get it done!"

 

"Good," the teacher said with a nod. He then moved to show different points of the assignment to his student, gesturing over each point on the rubric. "Now then, this shouldn't be too difficult, but it's enough that you'll certainly need to do more than a single night's work... Which," he added with another half-lidded stare, "I know you have more than enough time to handle, regardless of your part-time jobs..." Katsuya laughed nervously, before listening to what else the teacher had to say with a swallow. "What I'm asking you to do is pick a person in your life, other than yourself, and write an 'analysis' on them. A study of sorts, if you will, before forming it into the style of a research article. This article will be from your point of view, dealing with your views on that person; there will be no influence from other students or parents....including themselves. This is, in part, a study of _you_ as much as it is them."

 

The blond blinked, digesting the information for a moment. "Ah... 'N article?" he repeated.

 

The teacher nodded. "Precisely. I expect it to be at least two pages, though if you write it well enough I'll accept one and a half." He then smiled, stepping aside as the teen continued looking over the papers in confusion. "Good luck- I expect it within a month." Katsuya jumped at that, looking back to the teacher with wide eyes.

 

"A- A month? I though' th's was f'r those two days I miss'd!"

 

The outburst gained a laugh from the teacher, and he shook his head. "Consider it a large amount of preparation time given your experience with free-range projects in the past... Also," he added dryly, "I would rather it not get in the way of future assignments..."

 

"Hey, hey," the blond muttered, "I'm not tha' bad..." The teacher appeared to pointedly ignore him, waving him off with a smile.

 

"Yes yes... Get moving now," his teacher sighed, "You have work I imagine."

 

At this, Katsuya blinked before tensing considerably as he caught sight of the clock. That was right! If he didn't hurry, he was... "AAAH! See yah sensei," he shouted in panic, running out of the room to leave a laughing teacher behind. For all the struggle, the man had to admit that his student had more than enough spirit to prove his investment after all.

 

* * *

 

He didn't want to do his report on Yugi, because he felt that would probably be a little invasive despite the instructions to go from his own views only. And doing it on his relatives was either too hard or too... Well... Hard, to tell the truth. The further he went down the list, the more he was dreading this stupid report in all honesty. Katsuya frowned, sitting at his desk at lunch that next day as he tried to figure out who to do his paper on. So far, he managed to cross off about everyone he knew for various reasons, much to his distaste.

 

"Ahhhhh damn it..." He grabbed his head, before standing up with grit teeth. "I gotta figure this out..." Katsuya left the room, heading into the washrooms with a scowl. He needed to think of someone, anyone damn it, he had nothing! Honda had just as many (Well, almost as many) issues as he did, Yugi was too close of a friend for it to feel right, Shizuka too far away, his dad too private a subject (In terms of his own problems), and Anzu was... Well Anzu was a girl, and that'd be weird given the blatant crush his best friend had on the woman. There was no way that wouldn't colour his report somehow.

 

Not to mention the fact that everyone was recovering from that hellish, twisted night at that American professor's house. Zombies. Yikes.

 

If there wasn't something to turn the tone of the paper before, that was it there. Splashing his face with a bunch of water from the sink as these thoughts ran through his head, he groaned. "Mannnn what 'm I gonna do..."

 

"What you could do Jonouchi," a voice from the room said, "Is listen to what I say, right now." Katsuya jumped, pulling back from the sink as Kaiba's voice floated out from one of the stalls. "Got it?"

 

He blinked, before frowning. "Hehh? What the heck are you talkin' about?" Besides how creepy the request sounded in any context...Well, they were in a washroom so that really made it more creepy if anything. "What do you want with me, I thought you were done after Yug' showed you that card before!" Come to think Katsuya realized that instant, he never found out what happened after that. Actually, when Kaiba hadn't shown up the next day for school, Yugi looked a little worried. Not that he'd said anything, and it was hardly out of place for Yugi to be worried about even the worst of people but... Well, there had been rumors of screaming in the classroom that evening.

 

And rumors had to have root somewhere.

 

There was a scoffing noise, which seemed to be laced with either disgust (more likely) or possibly fear (not likely in any way, Katsuya determined). "Please... As if I sought you out, you mutt," the teen said, Katsuya growling at the 'mutt' comment. "Just listen, and maybe if you're lucky you'll get a treat."

 

"Ngggg... Why the hell would I listen to you yah ass?" If anyone was going to get help, it wouldn't be the ones making street-dog jokes to his face! Or as close as they could get to it in this moment, at least. To Katsuya's surprise, Kaiba fell silent for a short moment. The eerie air that had come with their initial request only intensified, and Katsuya felt himself stiffen with anxiety. What the hell was going on in that stall that was so important?

 

"Just. Do it. Mutt."

 

He tensed, but curiosity aroused, scowled and agreed nonetheless. "Yea yea, I'll do what yah want... But it better not have anythin' to do with my friends!" Another scoff, and Katsuya imagined that the teen was currently rolling his eyes.

 

"Hn! As if I want anything to do with them..! Just grab my bag and send it under the door, got it?" The blond raised a suspicious eyebrow at that, before blinking a few times.

 

This really was going in odd directions, wasn't it. "Your... Bag? Wait, you mean that briefcase you carry around," he asked, shaking his head. What the _hell_ did Kaiba _need??_ "What, don't have it on you?"

 

"Just get it Jonouchi!" He jumped as Kaiba's typically high temper came into play, a snarl echoing through the largely empty room for a few seconds following. It seemed a little more extreme this time around; but then again, the jerk was probably paranoid about something in the bathroom. Which only begged the question of 'what' even harder of course.

 

Katsuya smirked at the thought of whatever it was the teen needed, chuckling quietly to himself for a moment. Yeaaaaa... There was probably all sorts of stuff in that bag, if he thought about it... "Alright, alright," he decided with a shrug. It wasn't as though anyone was in the classroom right now anyways, what with it being sunny for once that month. Anyone who had a brain at all would currently be on the roof with their lunches- that, or in the schoolyard. "I'll get your stupid briefcase, sheesh..."

 

He was answered with silence, and the teen shrugged before walking out of the room to do as requested when it seemed there would be no snarky response. Ordinarily he wouldn't do this but... A thought entered his head as he grabbed the case in the room, before grinning. "Nyheheheheh... Wonder what's in here that he wants so bad..." Looking around the classroom, he turned back to the briefcase, a somewhat crafty grin still on his face. It looked simple enough as far as cases went... And of course, it was also _locked_. "...Hrnnnn..." He could pick locks...he could pick locks without even leaving too noticeable a scratch, if he said so himself. Katsuya looked up at the clock, idly weighing his options. Lets see... There was possibly getting caught by another classmate (Easy enough to handle), a teacher (Not so much), and then likely facing Kaiba's wrath in whatever form that would be...

 

And... Um...

 

Well. In the end he opted with sliding it under the door as requested, completely untouched and leaving Katsuya to lean against the stall as Kaiba managed to turn an act of gratitude into yet another insult. "I guess you can teach even the stupidest of dogs tricks," he said, ignoring the sputtering from Katsuya that he received in response. "Now then," he continued as he left the stall, giving the other teen a curt nod. "I keep my word Jonouchi. And something tells me that this 'reward' won't be refused." Aha- Wait what? What kind of reward...

 

He had to pause for a moment, as he made his decision. Apparently despite the offer given, Kaiba didn't expect it to be taken. His expression didn't change one bit when Katsuya snorted and moved to leave the room. "Feh, keep whatever yer 'reward is',” the blond muttered, “I don't need it..." The emphasis on 'reward' was a little too chilling for his tastes.

 

"Hn." As he left the room, Kaiba smirked. "You'll regret that someday mutt. As it is," he said as he crossed his arms, "Stop by my mansion if you change your mind." Yeah yeah yeah, whate- Hang on mansion?

 

For a brief moment, Katsuya found himself looking back, eyes narrowed with suspicion and confusion before he finally moved to return to the classroom. "Whatever," he muttered to himself. Kaiba was just an asshole anyways... And he'd have plenty of time to vent at him, or at least attempt to, during gym next class. Mansions and 'rewards' were nothing he should be thinking about right now, and with any luck they wouldn't be something to consider later either.

 


	4. Chapter 2 | Rewards

When he thought about it, going home and telling his dad he'd gotten fired from his part-time job probably wasn't the brightest idea. Particularly since he was not only still tired out from gym the last period, but also because his father drunk at the time. Not quite drunk enough to settle into the ending state of tears and guilt, but absolutely drunk enough to be anxious and pissed about a notice asking for the regular payment to the school Katsuya attended. And even the crappiest of schools had large price tags in Japan.

 

...Which was why he was now sitting in a hospital room, sighing as he listened to the doctor go on about taking it easy with his right arm. "It's been severely fractured," he said, Katsuya wondering what the hell that was supposed to mean other than 'It hurts, A Lot'. "If you look here on the x-ray," the doctor continued, "You can see multiple compact injuries. In fact," he added as he gave the teen a worried look, "I'm surprised your arm isn't completely useless now, not to mention curious as to whether or not it won't be in the future. You say you fell down the stairs?"

 

Katsuya nodded, still frowning as he held his right arm. "Yea, I go up a flight t' get in my house," he said as he bit his tongue, leaving out the reason why he'd fallen down the stairs in the first place. He needed to keep his old man out of this as much as possible, or he was completely screwed...both him, _and_ the 'old man' in question. "They get slippery this time 'f year, so..." Besides, once the money wasn't gone and the bottles were missing things were relatively fine these days. It was hardly often- but it was better than it had been when the divorce was fresh on their mind. Still, tripping on a bottle after being chased out of the apartment... Well that was just pathetic when it came to injury.

 

The doctor looked at him skeptically as his patient seemed to disappear into his thoughts, but nonetheless did nothing but shake his head and sigh. "Very well then..." He wrote a few things on a clip board, before standing from his chair. "You're going to need surgery to re-set the bones in your arm. It isn't too much," he continued as he put the pen down, "But we should probably contact one of your relatives to-"

 

"No!" The doctor froze as Katsuya shouted at the idea, the blond looking notably tensed before calming down and shaking his head. "Er... Naw, 's ok doc... How much is it," he added nervously, "I'll take care of it..."

 

The doctor blinked, before handing him the price and watching the teen nod and look over it. "As I said, not much," he repeated in slight confusion, "But the process itself will likely be just as painful as breaking the bone itself. We will then fit it into a cast, which you should keep on for around two months for the arm to heal." Technically the time was six weeks of course, but with the extent of the injury, it was best to over-estimate... At least that was how it was explained to him. He could guess given the number of other times he'd come in here really (though that wasn't too often any more, when he thought about it). Waking over to the door to see about arranging the surgery, the doctor looked back at Katsuya with a frown before pulling his patient from his thoughts. "If you're so sure about going about this alone, I'll see how fast we can get you in... Though you really should consider contacting a relative."

 

Yeah, no.

 

Katsuya simply grinned, wincing as an attempt to give him a thumbs up reminded the teen why he was there. No mention to dad, no mention to anyone... Easy! Hah! "Thanks doc!" After the man left however the grin quickly faded, and he sighed. "Man... Now I won't be able t' write anythin'..." Not that he did much writing before obviously, but... Well, this was still his best arm, and he had kind of been trying to get his marks up a fraction in the last bit. Though that probably wouldn't last long, see how school was... Boring. To say the least.

 

He thought back to his report for Japanese, sighing again as he leaned back against the wall of the doctor's examination room. On the one hand, he'd finally figured out who to do it on; between the fact that he cared less about what happened to Seto Kaiba as a result if anyone got their hold of the paper, and the fact that the whole situation in the washroom before had him just plain confused, it was an obvious choice. Now that he'd finally started however... The teen groaned once again, head smacking back on the wall yet again as he idly kicked the bench he sat on.

 

"Hnggg... I should've just taken whatever deal he gave me and left it at that..." If he was going to learn anything about Kaiba, that was probably how he would've done it. And now that he thought about it, what the hell did Kaiba have that he wanted in the first place? The only thing he'd ever even asked for anything was back at the game shop when... He... "Pbffffft... He's kiddn'," he muttered to himself with a slight laugh. "No way that's what he thought for a 'reward'."

 

* * *

 

There was no way Katsuya told himself for what seemed to be the umpteenth time later that day, that Kaiba had seriously considered playing against him in duel monsters. Particularly since all of his own interest in playing against the guy had vanished with the 'come back when you have 10,000 cards' comment he'd made after being asked about perhaps playing a round with him to begin with. Still, he thought as the doctors affixed a cast around his still sensitive arm, he supposed it was worth a shot.

 

Which was probably why during Gym class the next day, he found himself watching Kaiba rather than his actual friends as he sat on the sidelines with a frown. He had to admit- for all of the guy's asshole-ish-ness (Hell, the guy was the very definition of the word 'ass'), he was fairly good in the class. He'd have thought, Katsuya told himself as he looked up from his messy, left-hand-written homework, that someone who spent their time out of class with card games would be a fairly weak person. Heck, he mentally added, look at Yugi. No offense to the kid but he was a twig, and until recently paler than a ghost.

 

Yet lo and behold, as Kaiba sent another ball over the net Katsuya noted that not only was the teen definitely not performing moves that he could sneeze from the sidelines, but... He mentally groaned, almost snapping his pencil in half as he grit his teeth. Well damn it, he was _really_ good! He didn't even know a guy's body could bend that way over a net! And looking back, Kaiba had been the one to tell Yugi off about sitting inside during break on top of that- regardless of the fact that he was typically doing the same thing, with an English book of sorts. What was it recently... Nitch? Nietch? Something. He flushed as the teen looked over at him with narrowed eyes, before returning to his work red-faced.

 

Shit, getting caught staring would _not_ be a good thing to add to his day... Considering how pissed Mr. Karita was when he told the teacher that he'd have to sit out of gym class for what would pretty much amount to two months. Katsuya looked over his work with those thoughts, scowling at the messy hiragana and kanji meeting his eyes. Alright. Regardless of how well he normally did in class, even he knew this was bullshit. "Damn it..."

 

The bell rang, and he stuffed the papers back in his bag with a scowl. On the bright side, he told himself as he made his way to the school entrance now that class was over, he could at least start the second part of his project. Namely following Kaiba back to his house. And, he thought to himself with a grin, he could easily just say that the guy had told him to come over when Kaiba decided to question his presence. Seeing how he'd actually told him to stop by his house if he changed his mind and all.

 

He grinned, before a voice from behind made him jump and knock his injured arm into a wall. "Achk!" The blond sucked in a breath as his eyes filled with stars, trying and failing to show no reaction. "Hey Jonouch- Ahh! Shoot!" Yugi panicked as he watched his friend tense up, hands on his head for a few seconds before he calmed down slightly. "Err... Are you alright..?"

 

Katsuya blinked the last of the 'stars' out, before putting up a smile to hide the throbbing pain his arm was now in. "Y-Yea, it's no big deal!" Ow ow ow ow...

 

Continuing to grin he watched as Anzu and Honda appeared behind Yugi, before adjusting the bag strap on his shoulder with a free arm. "So," the boy asked, "What's goin on?"

 

The blond shrugged before Anzu stepped in, gesturing to the side. "Well, we were planning on going to Burger World for a bit, just to talk you know?" She had a hidden look that said 'I have work, and if I have to live with the fact that you guys know, you can sit there with me... Or else'. "You've been pretty quiet lately, so..." The girl trailed off, leaving the statement hanging as the others nodded in agreement.

 

The teen looked at the three, before shaking his head. Much as he wanted too... He kinda needed to get as much a head start on this stupid assignment as possible now that his damn arm was in pieces. The last thing he needed was _another_ reason for his dad to get on his case. "Nah, I can't guys. Gotta finish my homework for once..."

 

Honda laughed, adjusting his backpack as he grinned. "Never thought I'd hear that!" Shaking his head, he turned to the others and continued. "Come on- we can go to burger world another time right?" At the nods of the others Honda took off, Anzu following behind while Yugi paused to turn to Katsuya. For a moment, he merely stared. This quickly broke off into a large smile however.

 

"See you later, Jonouchi!" Katsuya nodded as the diminutive teen walked off, before watching as Kaiba left the building as well. Alright. Time to put the plan into action... Getting outside, he quickly realized how hard that would be however. "Awwwww crap..." Particularly since Kaiba was pretty much one of the only students who took a freaking car home. Let alone the fact that it was a fairly noticeable rolls royce. "Crap crap crap crap crap..." Didn't this just put a stick in his plans...

 

As he muttered this to himself however it seemed that for once Kaiba's arrogance was going to come in handy. In fact, the car pulled _back_ to stop beside him only a few seconds after it pulled away from the building. Watching with a slight frown as the window rolled down before him, he held back an insult, merely narrowing his eyes as Kaiba smirked from inside of the vehicle. "You look fairly pathetic with that arm Mutt," he said, leaning back against the seat before raising an eyebrow. "But not pathetic enough to forget which way your house is. Any particular reason why you're suddenly going the opposite direction?"

 

He bit his lip, before frowning. Ok, play it off... Because if Kaiba realized he was stalking him there would likely be blood. A few insults too, probably. But mostly blood. "Tch- Since when was it any of yer business rich-boy? Nothin' wrong with going tah catch up with my friends!" In all actuality, he had no clue how much money Kaiba had, thinking back to that 'rich boy' comment. But given the look of the car he had, and earlier mentions of 'mansion', it was probably a lot. Plus the name Kaiba, and KaibaCorp... (Though he couldn't possibly OWN that company right? It was probably just a relative...)

 

The teen rolled his eyes at the 'insult', before looking back at the blond with a momentary frown. "Excepting that I saw them leaving in the other direction..." A smirk came back on his face, and his eyes narrowed with slight mirth. "...Hnhnhnhnhn... I don't suppose that you got tired of being their 'pet' and decided to take the offer I gave you before," he asked, turning his attention to the blond even further.

 

Katsuya tensed, gritting his teeth. "I ain't anyone's pet Kaiba, and the only reason why I'm ev'n headin' this way is because I have nothin' better to do!" There was a sarcastic laugh from inside the car, before Kaiba moved to the other side of the vehicle and popped the door open.

 

...Ah... What? "Please," he said with a smirk. "Come on in; no doubt you're curious about my earlier offer after all..." It couldn't get worse. Seriously. What. What the hell...

 

What the hell was he planning? Telling him to 'get in', dangling some sort of 'reward' this way? The blond stood there a moment, weighing his options. On the one hand yes, this would get him closer to Kaiba, therefore getting him more stuff to put in his 'article'. On the other hand, for all he knew the freak was going to stab him and dump his body in an alley or something or...

 

He mentally shook himself, before hopping in and swinging the bag to his side. Bah, he could handle himself, even with a broken arm! Watching as the door shut automatically (Fancy, he thought to himself idly), he refused to meet Kaiba's gaze, instead looking to the side with a frown and crossing his arms. "Only 'cause I'm curious," he said tensely, ignoring the seatbelt to his side. "Nothin' else."

 

Kaiba snorted, before crossing his own arms and leaning forwards slightly with a small smirk. "Of course," he said, before turning his attention to the front. "Take us to the house, and no pit stops." The chauffeur nodded.

 

"Of course, Kaiba-sama." The car took off down the streets, Katsuya not even realizing that Yugi had seen the entire thing after coming back to return a borrowed textbook.

 

* * *

 

It wasn't until they arrived at the 'house' that Katsuya quickly realized just how rich the 'rich boy' really was. Mansion brought certain things to mind- but somehow, this went beyond. "Holy shit," he shouted, Kaiba rolling his eyes at the reaction to the enormous building. "Th's place 's huge! How loaded are y', money-bags?"

 

Kaiba scoffed, the gate to the house opening as the car pulled in to enter the drive way. Rather than answering himself, it was the chauffeur who clarified for the teen. "'Loaded' being the most crude of terms," he said with a well meaning chuckle, "I can effectively say that he has more than you could ever dream, being the CEO of Kaiba Corporation."

 

"Hehhh!" Katsuya turned to the teen, eyes wide with either partial awe, or maybe even respect. "You actually _own_ KaibaCorp?" Sheesh, no wonder he was so uptight about gaming. His entire _career_ was built on it. As quickly as the understanding came however, it grew murky again. He was pretty sure KaibaCorp was really new to the whole gaming deal, and- Wait. He frowned, though surprise was still fairly evident on his face as he shook his head and turned to the side. "Wait wait wait... Yer still in high school, so how..."

 

The teen rolled his eyes, hopping out of the car as he waited for Katsuya to do the same. "None of your business mutt- and if you plan on making it past my front door," he continued almost warningly, "I suggest you drop any questions on the subject."

 

Katsuya blinked, swallowing nervously as he stepped out of the car to watch it leave for the garage. "Er... Al... Alright..." Whatever he said then... He turned, watching as Kaiba headed for the front door and opened it to let the blond follow behind. "Soooooooo..."

 

"Nee-sama!"

 

The blond jumped as what looked to be a black blur came and charged towards Kaiba, before clearing up to be what was apparently a young boy. He quickly pulled back from his brother (Though Katsuya could swear he heard 'sister', not 'brother'), looking at the blond before staring back up at Kaiba.

 

"Er... Nii-sama," he said semi-nervously, bringing his voice down a notch. "Welcome home! Who's-"

 

The boy was pushed aside, his brother not even looking down as he moved past. "Not now Mokuba, I'm busy..." Katsuya followed after the teen somewhat, the door hanging somewhat open behind him as he gave the boy a glance. The boy- Mokuba, if he heard _that_ properly- scowled as the two passed, shutting the door with an angry slam before walking off behind them. It was more than evident that he felt hurt. Feeling slightly sorry for the kid, Katsuya turned back and stopped following the boy's brother with a scowl. "Oii... Kaiba," he called out, stowing his free hand in his pocket. "You can't be too busy t' spend time with him if you've got me over can yah?" He frowned, while Kaiba merely turned with a glare. "I mean heck," the blond continued with a snarl, "You should always have time for family!" He'd give anything if he could see his sister after all- what gave the rich-boy the right to just ignore his little brother?

 

In hindsight he realized as Kaiba turned back, maybe he shouldn't have been biting the hand that was giving him something. Whatever that something was, of course. While Mokuba gave the blond a slightly hopeful, if not surprised glance from behind them, Kaiba merely frowned. "You know Mutt, I was going to offer you a chance to face me in a duel monster's game," he began, before smirking and giving a small look toward his brother. "...I even had something new to spice it up a little... But now that I think about it, I'll let my brother decide on a 'reward' instead. It'll give me more time to perfect things," the teen continued, "And I'll have two less distractions to deal with."

 

Two-?

 

Katsuya tensed, looking back at the fallen expression on Mokuba's face before going red. Oh come on..! "What th' hell's wrong with you," he growled, ignoring the fact that Kaiba could likely kick him out any time he wanted. "Isn' this y'r brother? An' aren't you th' one who invited me here in the first place?" The teen merely continued walking toward a nearby door, snorting.

 

"Take it or leave it mutt- but for now, I'll be in my room." With that he left, the blond clenching his left fist until the nails began digging into his skin. Well wasn't that just great. Jerk at school, in public, and even to his own family. What an absolutely cheery place to stay in. It took a few moments before Mokuba's voice pulled him from his thoughts of just how much of a jackass the kid's brother was, a light tugging accompanying the sound.

 

'Hey'... 'Hey'... "HEY," he finally shouted, accidentally tugging at the teen's injured arm while he was at it. "Ackh!" The blond flinched, the boy doing the same as they drew back from each other. "Er... Whoops?" They fell into an awkward silence, before the boy spoke up again. "Um... I can get something to eat if you want," he said with a small shrug. "...You don't really look like you get much decent food." There was no time to comment on what his appearance had to do with things- instead, his attention latched onto the word 'Food'. Despite being related to such a prick, Mokuba was being surprisingly... Civil about this. "No offense or anything," the added somewhat hastily as Katsuya stared- though it sounded kind of like he actually did mean some form of offense in a way with the suspicious look he was receiving. He supposed that came from being told to give him a 'reward' of sorts though.

 

Katsuya inwardly seethed at that thought, still frowning- what, the great Seto Kaiba wasn't good enough to just say thank you and be done with? At least he had something else to put on his paper- Not only was Kaiba a billion dollar CEO, he also had a kid brother. Who he apparently treated like shit just as much as he would any other person. And well... Food sounded good. "Sure," he finally said, shrugging slightly. "An' heck, don't sweat it about the food... Somethin' tells me anythin' here is better than what I get at home." He sighed, before frowning as Mokuba pulled a butler over to get some food made. "What was that all about anyways? I mean... He isn't the nicest guy on the planet," Try he's the 'worst', he added mentally, "But even I'd figure he'd be a lil' better towards..."

 

Mokuba shook his head. "It's fine... Nii-sama gets like that every once in a while..." He had a sad smile on his face, and slowly led Katsuya over to a coat room of sorts. "I'm used to it now..." He gestured over to the hangers in the room. "Hang your stuff up here," he told the blond. "You don't wanna carry a backpack around with your arm like that right?"

 

"Er..." No. No he didn't. "...Thanks..." Sheesh, he didn't expect this kinda treatment... Putting his bag on the side with a little difficulty, he ended up doing the same with his uniform jacket, hanging it on the closet door knob despite Mokuba's raised eyebrow- putting it on was just a little hard with the cast in the way, so he'd opted to wear it on only one arm for the moment. And hanging it up was just as difficult really. Turning back to look at Mokuba, he blinked. "So... Er... How old are yah anyways kid?"

 

The boy huffed, crossing his arms. "It's 'Mokuba', not 'kid' to you," he said, reminding Katsuya of the kid's older brother almost instantly. "...And I'm 10," he continued with a grin. "11 in July! I start middle school next year!" Ah- Middle school huh... Katsuya blinked, momentarily distracted by the immensity of the building yet again before smiling somewhat ridiculously as he looked back to the kid.

 

"Ten huh... That's great!" Hahaha... A ten year old was Yugi's height. That... That figured, it really did...

 

Mokuba nodded as they continued down the hall, the grin on his face slowly becoming more honest. "Hehehe... Yep- I'm also the VP of KaibaCorp," he said with casual pride, leading Katsuya over to the kitchen.

 

Vice President huh... Wow. "That's pretty cool- WAAAAIIIIT..." He shook himself, looking down at the boy incredulously as he stopped walking. "Did... Didn' you just say you were still in grade school..?" What what WHAT. How. HOW, he asked himself mentally, just. Augh. HOW? The kid smirked, bringing Katsuya over to a rather large looking dining room.

 

"Haha! That's cause I got tired of tutors all the time! Seriously, I was locked in my room all day..." He'd give him that- homeschooling in this place didn't seem like a great idea if Kaiba had his hands in it. But the pros and cons being weighed in his mind must have shown in his expression- The boy took a seat, his grin still in place as he gestured about the room to continue. "Seriously, look around! What do you see?"

 

Katsuya stared for a moment, before blinking. "Nyhh... Honestly?" There was a nod, and he grinned. "This place is huge! It's like a castle," the blond laughed, eyes shining somewhat. "I mean hell, you've got servants an' maids an'... An'... Maaaaaaaan..." He trailed off, before noting that Mokuba's expression had faded slightly and dropped his own grin in response.

 

"Yea- it's great right?" He had a feeling that was sarcastic. "It's lonely though," Mokuba added seriously, crossing his arms as he looked down. "You saw nii-sama out there; that's him on a good day! I never even see him smile now, and if it wasn't for school," he continued almost miserably, "I wouldn't get to see anyone my age!" He paused, before scowling. "Even then, the kids I hang around with are too scared to really be 'friends'..." Though there was a look there that implied he didn't mind the use he got from them. Or at least, that's what it looked like to him. An awkward silence fell over the table, food coming in but remaining untouched as servants left the pair alone in the room once more. Why...

 

"Why are yah tellin' me this," he asked, eyes dimming somewhat. It was really, really unnerving to tell the truth. Especially since he had just met the kid. Not to mention the servants and food and... ...And the time... Shit his dad was going to kill him- he was supposed to go job hunting after school, instead he was having dinner with a pint-sized company VP. Mokuba apparently didn't notice the discomfort that Katsuya suddenly felt however, instead giving him a sad smile and shrug.

 

"Honestly? You're the first person my big brother's ever brought home for something other than a 'death match'," he said with quotes. "Let alone turn him down after. The only other person he ever talks about is some guy named 'Mutou Yugi' from his school- and that's just because he lost a game to him..." He scowled again, before sighing and forcing a bit of food into his mouth. "I'm tempted to thank him for it," he said between mouthfuls and swallows, "But after today..." The sentence didn't need to be finished really. But...

 

"Wait, wait..." Katsuya shook his head, ignoring the grumbling his stomach was sounding off with to give Mokuba a wide eyed stare. "Yugi? He ended up playin' a game with your brother any way?" No names, he told himself as a warning- Calling that guy 'Kaiba' in front of someone with the same last name would be weird... But Yugi playing a game of duel monsters with him? "He never said anything like that..." Which was weird, because... Well. Yugi told him a lot of things. At least a lot more than he himself would be comfortable sharing.

 

Nonetheless the boy shrugged, sticking to what he'd said. "Whatever... Point is, things have gotten hectic since then... He's getting a lot less sleep..." He sighed, poking his plate of food. "I'm kinda worried actually..." Katsuya frowned slightly, before taking a fork to eat his own dish. Looking down on it now actually, it took all he could not to instantly go pale with shock. This was steak. Not the 'cheap' kind either- it was a thick, pay through the nose _wagyu steak._ As the shock passed however, he found that for some reason he didn't feel that hungry right now.

 

"...Hey," he said, using a tone that he'd once used as a kid with his little sister, "It'll be fine alrigh'? I mean..." The blond poked his food a little, silently hoping that what he said wouldn't be used against him (Like how he was using all of this in his report for Japanese. Damn, now he felt like an ass...). "You've still got each other righ'?” As 'encouraging' as that likely sounded. “Me, I don' even get to see my sibling," he half whispered. Mentioning siblings when he otherwise wouldn't would be something to do for the steak. Because... Damn. Steak. With all the fixin's, one could say. He would admit internally that it could also be to ease his feelings of asshole-ish-ness, which were likely being inflicted by the boy sitting across from him. The fiend! Worse than Yugi damn it, and Yugi didn't even do that on purpose!

 

"Huh?" Mokuba frowned, blinking a few times as Katsuya was pulled from his thoughts. "What do you mean?" He raised an eyebrow, wondering what the teen was getting at as the blond blinked.

 

Katsuya shrugged, a fake smile in place as he attempted to cut some of the steak. "Mom split when I was 8," he began, voice a little quiet. "Shizuka-chan was 6. Haven't seen her since." He didn't blame them though he decided as he struggled to cut the steak with one hand. Hell, it was probably for the best that they got out of there before the real damage started. As much as his father had declined in response to the divorce, he doubted things would have been any better if they'd all stayed in the same apartment. As to anything more on that subject... Well, he wouldn't be saying anything. Simple as that.

 

Across from him, Mokuba seemed to stare for a few moments before going to his food again in silence. "...Sorry," he finally said, not looking back up. "Must be hard..."

 

Hard..? Well... "Nah," he said, silently cursing the steak as it moved around on the plate under the knife. "It's fine... I get letters sometimes..." A loud screech pierced the air as the knife scraped against the plate, Katsuya finally giving in with a scowl. Stupid, fucking...

 

Mokuba moved around the table, lightly shoving the teen aside in an attempt to take his place. "Here," he said, sounding slightly annoyed after the ear-splitting noise. "I'll cut it." He moved back, attempting to take the knife back from the boy.

 

"It's fine," he said, also feeling agitated at the moment- he could cut meat himself, sheesh... "I'll manage, alrigh'?"

 

The boy would apparently have none of it however, and managed to steal the plate away to the other side with a grin as Katsuya reached out with his bad arm only to hiss. ACK- Not good, not- "HAH." Cutting the steak into pieces as Katsuya seethed on the other end, he smirked, rolling his eyes. "Sheesh, you're worse than Seto-niisama when it comes to pride... It's just steak." Steak that was being cut for him like it would for a baby! As the teen growled slightly, Mokuba's grin grew, a chuckle meeting the air. "Hahaha, no wonder nii-sama calls you a mutt, you even sound like one!"

 

"Rggg..." That probably wasn't helping. He rubbed his head, scowling as he looked across the table. "Where the heck did that name even come from!" Stupid Kaiba and his stu- Wait... A frown came over his face, the blond turning to Mokuba with a more confused expression. "Oiiii, hang on... Since when was I a topic tha' you two shared," he asked. "I thought y' said Yugi was th' only one y' did tha' with."

 

He shrugged, a rather neutral expression in place. "Eh... For some reason, for the past few days he's mentioned you a few times. Mostly, he called you Mutt," he added with a smirk, chuckling somewhat before pushing the plate back toward Katsuya. "Though I can't say I fault him for it- You sure do look the part," the boy added humorously, ignoring the growl he received in response. Abruptly, the expression died, and Katsuya suddenly regretted wearing a t-shirt. He had been using his cast and to block Mokuba's view of his good arm but now that he was trying to eat... "Holy crap... Where did you even get those bruises?"

 

Katsuya blinked, inwardly wincing. Right... His other arm was almost as injured as his 'good one', from incidents _prior_ the fall. "Er... Same reason I broke my arm," he said with a cough, shaking his head. "'S nothin' really." He put his fork down, bringing the fairly swollen and blue-black arm beneath the table. Out of sight out of mind right?

 

Apparently however, Mokuba wasn't ready to drop the subject. He walked past, ignoring Katsuya's protests and poked his head out the door. "Hey, Hobson! Come here for a second!" What..? There was a muttering from the other side of the door, and for a moment, the blond found himself frowning at the silent conversation going on. Finally he heard Mokuba say something, the boy moving back from the door as he added one last shout. "Make sure nii-sama doesn't know!" He would if he kept shouting..!

 

There was another mutter, and the boy turned back with a fairly conspiratory grin. "O-oi," he muttered, "What w's tha' about?" Watching as Mokuba merely continued to grin the blond's scowl deepened. "An' what's with the look!" With those very words he found himself grabbed from behind by one of the guards that he'd seen in the house on the way to the room, face growing red as he turned back in protest. "Gh! What th'... OI, what's th' big idea!"

 

Mokuba rolled his eyes, before smirking as he laughed. "Oh please, stop whining or I actually WILL call you a dog..." Hoping on the chair that Katsuya had now effectively abandoned, he pulled the boy's good arm forwards and stared at it, ignoring the blond's wince. "Neh, Saruwatari," he said with a frown. "These caused by a fall?" Sheesh, there was no way that these guys would know his old man did this by just loo- His eyes widened as the muscled, well dressed guard shook his head, the man having removed his sunglasses to get a better look at the arm. "Not at all; the way these are distributed, these came from a variety of things. A pan perhaps, or a bottle... They look bad," he added, "But in reality it wouldn't have taken much force to create these. A fall _would_ have left worse." GH- Oh come on..! Saruwatari looked fairly pleased about revealing this fact, he noted. That or disgusted about holding him, Katsuya thought with a growl.

 

Quite honestly, he wanted out of the grip himself, and if it wasn't for the fact that he kinda/sorta liked Mokuba for the moment, he'd have attempted to fight his way out by now. That and the fact that his arms hurt like hell. "OII!" Nonetheless ignoring the pain he squirmed slightly, still attempting to move out of the guard's grip. "Since when did you care 'bout how I got 'n a hospital?" he snarled. Seriously, they met today! What the hell... Differences between big-brother/little-brother were just a little frightening right now. Maybe more than that actually. The boy before him scoffed, before letting Saruwatari drop the teen back to his feet with a swift gesture.

 

"Since what I said earlier- you're the first person who I've ever seen to actually talk your way out of a 'reward' from my older brother, that's what," he answered bluntly. "Ignoring the fact that you're probably a moron for it..." Gee, thanks... The boy crossed his arms, sitting on the chair with an odd look of respect in his eyes even as he stared at the ground. "I've never... NEVER seen anyone, no matter what age, bother rejecting any kind of offer when they were already here. Never," he repeated, looking back up at the blond before him. "The fact you did that just because he pushed me aside is..." He covered an expression of surprise with a smirk, before shaking his head. "Anyways, I'm sure he'll tell me off about this later," he went on, "But I mind as well take advantage of the lack of restrictions he put on your reward. So," the boy shouted with a grin. "Consider yourself the guest for the night!"

 

Katsuya blinked. And then blinked again. Mokuba thankfully had the sense to plug his ears before the realization really set in. (Saruwatari on the other hand, visibly winced.) "WHAT!" He stared at the boy, shaking his head. Nooooo... No fucking way, that was... "Are y'... Are y' crazy? I can' stay here!" This place was waaaayyy to ritzy, way way way too ritzy, and there was noooo way he'd keep this quiet... Well, maybe he would keep it quiet, but holy shit... Mokuba shrugged, unphased by the reaction.

 

"If you're worried about your dad, we could always call him and-”

 

If there was one thing that would make not showing up even worse, it was that. "Er, that's fine!" Mokuba blinked at the sudden defence, before the teen coughed and shook himself with a sigh. "'S fine... But... Why are you offerin' me to stay the night? At all," he added, expression growing fairly serious. Hell, if he wasn't so sure that Kaiba might actually kill him for it, he'd probably be ok. Heck, any night outside of his own house was great at the moment provided he was careful about heading back but... Still. Seriously. Right... Right out of the blue...

 

Another shrug, and one of Mokuba and Kaiba's maids came into the room. "Something just tells me that if I do this," he said with a smirk, "The bruises will disappear faster. Consider this your reward for... Well. What ever it is you did for my brother, alright," he continued, hands behind his back as he smiled. It looked, for a moment, like Mokuba had been about to say something else. In the end however, he hadn't... So Katsuya was left standing there with a sigh, wondering what it was. Seriously, what had been so damn important? He rubbed his head with his good hand, groaning.

 

"I don' s'ppose I could jus' r'fuse it..." There was a grin from Mokuba, and the boy shook his head.

 

"Nope! Already had your things confiscated- and I'm willing to bet that's your only uniform right?" The scowl from Katsuya told him that was a yes, and he continued grinning. "Alright! In the meantime," the boy shouted as he hopped from the chair, "You get to play games with me!" Wait wh-

 

Katsuya frowned, mouth open with disbelief. "Hang on what? How'd I end up wi' that?" He wasn't here to babysit! (That was what the guys in suits were there for right?) The boy frowned as well, crossing his arms.

 

"Well if you don't, I'll make sure Nii-sama thinks that you were a complete pain, and whatever I bug him with will affect his treatment towards you." Before Katsuya could respond to that, Mokuba's eyes narrowed. "And trust me, it CAN get worse." He gulped, silently picturing just what that would look like. So far it was... Kaiba. Probably with a steak knife. Maybe the kitchen was involved?

 

He really needed to keep his meal thoughts separate from these things. "Alrigh'... Alrigh'," he muttered with a sigh. "Let's go..." The sigh was given again when Mokuba's reaction was to jump up and cheer, before grabbing him by his good arm to pull him away through the door, turning to the maid standing at the side for a moment.

 

"Just make sure to be ready to show him his room for the night later, ok?" The maid nodded, gaining another groan from Katsuya as he was pulled down to another room. Oh come ON... "So," the boy began, releasing Katsuya's arm before pulling a board from the side of the room with a grin. "Ever play CapMon?"

 

The next few hours would effectively be the weirdest few he'd ever had in his life. Which was saying something, given what had happened in the past few days of it.

 


	5. Chapter 3 | Sticks and Stones

Getting to school the next day was a very interesting event to say the least. First, Katsuya had woken up and almost punched the poor maid who came in to do so for him in the face, which sent the woman screaming off. Then, after Mokuba came in and rather furiously asked what had happened, it finally registered what had happened the night before and the blond began panicking about school.

 

Completely ignoring Mokuba's question, of course. Mokuba had rolled his eyes and said that he had it covered, a butler coming in with breakfast seconds after and watching as their guest stared at for no less than five minutes before wolfing it down. Given the bemused expressions on both of their faces, his reaction made the fiasco well worth it.

 

The plan as Mokuba had put it together, was this: Apparently he was going to have one of the servants drive him until he was two blocks away on his side of the city from the school, where he would be let off in some discrete area and no one would be any the wiser. He could safely walk from there, as if nothing had ever happened. All in all, once everything was guaranteed it made for a really cool morning given his normal ones- he probably pinched himself five times wondering if it had been a dream, and was still doing it as he walked down the road towards the school. An amazing morning, with a flawless plan at that!

 

And for a moment, Katsuya had thought it had really worked. It wasn't until he came to the school's entrance to see Yugi's panicked expression that he realized that might not have been the case. "Jonouchi-kun," the boy cried, Katsuya turning to blink as his friend attempted to regain his breath. "Jonouchi-kun, are you alright?" he finally managed to get out. "I saw you get in that car with Kaiba-kun yesterday, and... Well, I couldn't really go to your house to check..." No. No he couldn't and awww fuck. Alright, Jonouchi thought with an internal grimace. Alright, time to fix this.

 

Somehow.

 

He blinked, swallowing for a moment as a frown briefly came over his face. Wait, hadn't Yugi been gone by that point, he asked himself. How did he even see what had happened? Trying to figure it out just lead to a headache, so instead he pressed onward. "Nhh... I'm fine," he muttered, quickly replacing the expression with a somewhat forced smile. "'S nothing-" Yugi shook his head, frowning slightly.

 

"Jonouchi-kun... I know he doesn't seem bad but last time we spoke, he stole Grandpa's card. I can't remember what happened after that but..." Another blink, followed by a headshake this time as Katsuya filed that away. So the reason why Yugi ended up facing Kaiba was... Because he stole that blue eyes card? Wasn't that thing worth lots and lots of money and so freakishly rare/powerful that people literally killed for it? (According to 'Grandpa', at least.)

 

The price tag, he supposed, made that matter make sense. But then how did he not remember... "You can't remember?" he voiced with a slightly worried look. "Whadya mean Yug', you've got a better memory than half the people I know!"

 

Yugi gave the teen a wry smile, before sighing. "N..Nothing... It's probably nothing..." Katsuya frowned- something told him it wasn't 'nothing', but at the same time he didn't want to flat out accuse his best friend of lying; hell, regardless of the topic it couldn't be that bad if Yugi wasn't telling him right? They trusted each other! If it was important, he would have said more.

 

Momentarily, his mind drew from a conversation he'd had with Mokuba the night before, which had ended up focused on Yugi. He figured it was inevitable- he was one of the few things they had in common after all. What Mokuba had told him however now echoed in his ears.

 

' _Nii-sama is always going on about how, right before he was challenged to the duel, Yugi 'changed'.'_ Katsuya had of course asked what the hell that meant, which got nothing more than a head shake from the boy in response. ' _I don't know- all he said was that he was suddenly colder, more confident... I don't know exactly what happened after that, but something changed that day. Not much, but a little._ ' It was weird. Weird, and a little creepy in hindsight. Katsuya drifted off into thought, wondering what Mokuba had been talking about. A different Yugi? How was that even possible..? He was snapped back to reality by Yugi's shouts, blinking as he looked down.

 

"Eh? What was that Yug'?" He paused, before grinning embarrassingly to cover up his anxious thoughts. "Err... Must've spaced out huh..." Yeah. That tended to happen.

 

Yugi shook his head, smiling. "Shouldn't you at least wait until class for that Jonouchi-kun? I said the bell rang. Come on, or we'll be late!"

 

"Right!"

 

As Yugi ran ahead of him, the teen turned to follow, shaking his head and casting Mokuba's words out of his mind. Right. He had to focus, the teen reminded himself. After what he'd spent half the night talking about, he had a bunch more things to add to his report, and even more things he'd need to actually research. Had the teacher placed much emphasis on research? No, but if he was supposed to write about his thoughts on someone, he should know more about them first right? That was how he was thinking about it, but sitting in class he mentally shuddered at the thought of the work that would be involved. It wasn't great, but he really needed this mark. If he didn't get this done right, he'd probably end up flunking the class...which left a looming threat in the form of what his old man found out in the long run.

 

He sighed as he tried to keep himself from falling asleep through the lesson, mentally pouring over the only scrap of information he had on Kaiba that could be researched. They'd been talking about the whole situation of being in charge of a company while being in school; Mokuba had admitted to convincing his brother to enrol himself as well as the boy into school, at their exact age level, for a chance at a 'normal life'. Katsuya had quietly wondered what Kaiba wanted with a 'normal life', considering he absolutely wasn't getting it. If it hadn't been the case before, once his classmates heard the name Kaiba and linked it to KaibaCorp it would have. All problems with the idea aside, when Katsuya had asked what they did about school before hand only one name had come up.

 

Apparently, it was the name of a tutor that Kaiba had had directly before coming into full possession of the company; said tutor was now volunteering at a university library, as the money earned from the job had been more then enough to retire in peace once Kaiba had let the man off. It wasn't much to go on, Katsuya told himself. Just a name, and a building. However even his teacher would have to admit that it was something of a leap for him in terms of getting class work done.

 

"Jonouchi-kun!" A ruler snapped on his desk to jolt him from his thoughts, and the English teacher, 'Chono-sensei' quickly narrowed her eyes at him. "What is it that you're staring off for right now?" she said with a sickeningly sweet and definitely not healthy smile. "Would you like to share with the class? Hnn..?" Katsuya grew white- this was the legendary 'Expulsion Teacher' after all. Maybe he'd get lucky he hoped, sweating as he thought of how to answer. She hadn't been doing that much as of late, not since-

 

He blinked, briefly tensing up under the woman's gaze before frowning slightly. "Er... Your face is..."

The teen coughed, nervously leaning back as it appeared to flake off into puzzle pieces. "Breaking..."

 

Anything underneath the pieces? Did not look good. Those bags were hideous. And her skin! More and more pieces fell, only freezing once the words had sunk in themselves. Chono froze, jerking up and running up to the front instantly. "On second thought, I'm sure that it was nothing," she said in a fairly loud, if not higher than normal tone. She hurriedly went back to the front, replacing the ruler on the desk as she covered her face and grabbed her purse. "I'll be right back!" As the door slammed behind the woman, about half the class had to wonder if this was what happened before with that puzzle incident. Katsuya merely spent the rest of the day trying not to sleep, as little else could really outshine that moment when it came to excitement.

 

* * *

 

Domino, as one of many prefectures of Tokyo, was predominantly the home of two things. Near the core, it was game stores and other entertainment- until recently, KaibaCorp had actually been breaking that mold. The other was museums, closer to the outskirts. It created a strange duo for tourism, but they seemed to go hand in hand with the other regardless. It was no surprise however that as a result, the university that this 'Tanaka-san' worked at was all the way in the next district over. Katsuya groaned at the thought, mentally recalling the address. He opted not to voice his complaints, instead biting his lip as he trudged on.

 

The fact was, he couldn't afford the subway right now, things were so tight- he had no clue how much money his old man was going to end up loosing in his next gamble, or on alcohol, and the fact was, no one was hiring a person with a broken arm for the work he relied on before. He'd be waiting for the guy to fall asleep before re-entering his house for the next bit as it was, unless he wanted to play a game of 'dodge x number of whatever he was holding when the door opened'. And of course for that same reason, until the end of at least the next two months he was stuck scrounging up any penny he could find, and stashing it where no one could find it.

 

All this, while praying that his dad didn't end up throwing it away before it saw the light. Katsuya sighed, rubbing his head with his free hand before shaking it. "Maaan... Why couldn't this guy work closer," he muttered to himself as he finally made it to the university grounds, pushing the door to the library open with a sigh. A rush of air hit him from the air conditioner, and he winced- now that it was spring, he'd been getting used to the absolutely insane humidity that had as of late been arriving earlier and earlier in the year. Entering a room so well air conditioned was almost as much a shock as it had been at Kaiba's mansion. At least there, he'd been too nervous and distracted by Kaiba himself to notice the shift.

 

Wandering a little ways in, he looked for the main library desk to find Tanaka so that he could get out of there- before the cold air made the outside that much more unbearable, preferably. Spotting the man at a desk with (thankfully) a sign bearing his name, he walked over with a relatively confident smile. "Oi," he said as he reached the front, the man looking up with a jolt. "You Tanaka-san?"

 

The man blinked, putting down a book he'd been reading to nod. "That is correct," he said with slight hesitancy. "...Are you looking for something in particular?" he asked the teen, giving him a skeptical look. "You don't seem to be a student..." At least he wasn't looking at him like he was trash, Katsuya decided. That was a relief. He couldn't say he didn't agree with Tanaka on the matter of not looking like a university student while wearing a school uniform after all.

 

"That's 'cause I'm not," he confirmed as he shook his head, continuing. "I was wonderin'... I was talking to a friend named Mokuba, he said yah taught his older brother at one point?" There was some visible recognition at that name, and he grinned. Excellent. "Name's Seto, 'm I right?"

 

Tanaka raised an eyebrow, before looking around. "That depends," he said before swallowing, getting up out of his chair to look at the boy. "What is it that you want to know?" Katsuya blinked.

 

"Errr..." That wasn't a good line to hear.

 

The man continued, crossing his arms. "And for how much?"

 

The blond continued to shift nervously as the second half of the dreaded question came up, abruptly finding the room far warmer than it had been seconds earlier. "Eh... W-Wait a sec here, I never said..." Man, there went that plan... The gaze continued, with Katsuya momentarily wondering if he would need to make a break for it, before the librarian abruptly burst into a fit of laughter. "Oh dear, I'm pulling your leg, it's fine! Possibly your arm too, but from what I can tell you need it," he said with a wink.

 

What. What...

 

Ignoring the confused look he was now getting from the blond, Tanaka gave a chuckling sigh before putting an arm around Katsuya's back. "Over here- no doubt that if you know Kaiba-san you came from Domino, and given your current state it's fairly evident that you walked." The elderly man shook his head, an expression of evident shock and disbelief on his face. "Though god knows what possessed you to do that!" Thanks?

 

What the hell kind of guy pulled that kind of joke?

 

They took a seat, Katsuya looking around the room with wide eyes. For a small university, this place had a really, really tall ceiling. And a lot of books. More than he'd ever seen, that he was sure. It was a little similar to Kaiba's mansion, if the mansion had far more furnishings and people to fill the space. Just as quiet though, which made sense he supposed. A cough from Tanaka pulled him from his thoughts, and he jerked his head back around to face the man.

 

Tanaka chuckled, shaking his head. "Easily distracted are we?" Ignoring the scowl on Katsuya's face at the comment, he continued speaking. "I can certainly see why you came all the way out here just to see me... You realize," he warned with a slightly raised eyebrow, "That while I did indeed tutor Kaiba-san for a majority of his time in the Kaiba house, it's still only four years of experience... And I can hardly say I know the boy from teaching him English!"

 

The blond blinked, frowning. Ignoring the fact that Tanaka had just said he was wasting his time coming this far... "Four years? But Kaiba's sixteen, how's '4' a majority of 'is time?" At least he assumed he was sixteen. Because... He doubted he was any younger than that. That would be one hell of a growth spurt. The old man shook his head, smiling.

 

"Ahhh, so Mokuba-kun didn't tell you then?" It was interesting, Katsuya noted, how as soon as Mokuba was mentioned among adults that knew him (Or at least among the maids and butlers at his house when neither were in the area), the reference was fairly informal, if not 'normal' in contrast to when his older brother came into the picture. Another point for the report, he supposed. "You see..." He paused, frowning. "Oh my, I never got your name..." No, no he didn't.

 

"Ah... Jonouchi Katsuya," he said, rubbing his head. "Nice ta meetcha I guess." Might as well be

polite about this, if this was polite that was. He smiled.

 

"Nice to meet you indeed," Tanaka said with another chuckle. "As I was saying now... You see Jonouchi-kun, Mokuba-kun and his older brother were adopted six years ago by the late owner of Kaiba Corporation, Gozaburo Kaiba-san. He is the one who hired me to tutor the boy in English," he continued, frowning slightly. "Now that I think about it, it was one of the few classes that he bothered to have a tutor present for... From what I recall, Gozaburo was responsible for almost all of the boy's schooling." Katsuya nodded slightly, a little taken aback by the revelation that 'money-bags' didn't start out that way. But how did that factor into being such an ass? Maybe it was this 'Gozaburo' guy's fault... Probably rubbed him the wrong way, or just convinced him that other people weren't worth his time or some crap like that.

 

"Hnnn... Well. Tha's somethin' new. Uh..." Blinking, he tried to think of something to ask Tanaka about that wouldn't sound too strange. Or make him seem like a stalker. Or... Well anything that wasn't newspaper fodder really. As much as he needed that kind of thing, he probably wouldn't get it that way. "Say what was he like back then, Kaiba I mean?"

 

A jerk? He'd bet he was! "Well," Tanaka paused, going silent for a moment before answering. "Before I answer that Jonouchi-kun, how exactly do you know Mokuba-kun? You seem to be far closer to Kaiba-san's age from what I can tell," the elderly man observed with a quizzical expression.

 

Katsuya supposed he had a point there, as much as he blinked at the question. "Er... Kaiba invited me over f'r somethin," he began, attempting to keep it as vague as possible, "And I ended up shoutin' at him for ignorin' his brother... So I ended up spending th' afternoon with Mokuba instead..." Now that he said it out loud, it sounded kind of pathetic, like he'd been rejected for friendship with a classmate and had to settle for someone two thirds his age. Rather than the expected frown, this instead elicited another laugh from Tanaka. "Oi," he said with a growl, "What's so funny about that?"

 

The man shook his head, quickly calming himself. "Oh nothing, nothing... The very image of Kaiba-san rejecting his brother like that..." Tanaka fell silent, the smile vanishing all too quickly. "Though I suppose that given his behaviour after those few weeks... I can't say I have much else to compare it to after all..."

 

What was he muttering about..? Katsuya frowned as he attempted to take a guess. "Heh..." Idly, he glanced at a clock that was on the wall behind Tanaka, inwardly wincing as he realized he would have to leave in only a few minutes. Evidently this would be the thread he chased for his report, take it or leave it. "What 'few weeks'? What, was Kaiba not always a jerk 'r somethin?" Blasphemy! Lies! It was against the laws of nature! (Wasn't it?)

 

Tanaka blinked, and hesitantly he responded. "Or 'something'... You see Jonouchi-kun," he said seriously, "When I first met the Kaiba brothers, they were very close. Extremely close actually... One would not be seen without the other outside of classes; to be frank, one could say that not even two peas in a pod were closer than they. Though time outside of classes was considerably rare, so I suppose that could have been a factor in their relationship... Nonetheless," he continued, his words dropping in and out of rambling, "There was always something hidden there, something incredibly private that I could never hope to grasp. Not in all my years of teaching." Before he explained more, he sighed. "How does Kaiba-san sound? He's doing well I presume?"

 

Er... How was he supposed to know? Mentally shrugging that off, he snorted. "Feh! Aside from an apparent lack of sleep?" Not that he noticed earlier, not until Mokuba mentioned it, but it at least explained the quieter attitude as of late. "As high-n-mighty as ever. Acts like he rules the world, jerk," he said with a scowl, not caring at the moment if Tanaka's opinions matched his own. (Though the man seemed to be giving a humored smile if that was any consolation) Now that he thought about it...no. There was nothing to re-think. "Even when he isn't actin' like it, he still sounds like a smug creep!" It was really, really hard not to swear in front of this guy, at least with Kaiba on the brain.

 

The old man smiled wryly, shaking his head. "I see... To tell the truth, he used to sound completely different." At Katsuya's baffled expression, he clarified. "These 'few weeks' that I'm speaking of... I'm sharing this with you only because I trust you not to share it with anyone else, understand? You came here at Mokuba-kun's word. That alone tells me there is reason to do this." The blond blinked rapidly, stunned to silence. Um. Ok. He hadn't gotten that kind of trust before, not outside of Yugi but... Ok. Tanaka waited for the teen to nod silently, before nodding in reply. "When Kaiba-san was 14 you see, or rather right before it, he sounded quite young. In fact," he said with a nostalgic chuckle, "One could almost say his voice was 'feminine'. It hadn't even given a crack by then- and regardless of the standard path a voice would take around that time, this apparently irritated his father to no end." As Katsuya continued to listen in confused silence, shooing the image of Kaiba with a far higher voice out from his mind, the man went on.

 

"On Kaiba-san's birthday, I was given a notice to take the next number of weeks off. It was the first time I had ever been told such a thing, so needless to say I was shocked. Particularly when, after all that time, I was given notice not to push him to partake in any oral activities for the next two weeks. Apparently," he muttered, "His voice had been strained by some sort of activity, and it was now healing."

 

Katsuya frowned. What the hell was this old man getting at? What, did Kaiba have a destructive shouting match back then or something? (He both could and couldn't see that actually.) Tanaka continued, giving an almost regretful sigh.

 

"During this time, the brothers were close as ever of course. Occasionally, Mokuba-kun would slip into the class as I taught his older brother; sometimes I wonder if that was the only time they ever got with each other..." He drifted off, before shaking his head. "During that time however, Kaiba-san completely covered his throat. Initially of course, I paid this no mind...but I began to realize that from the moment I had returned to teaching him, he always had his neck covered as much as possible. So as you can likely guess," he added as he rubbed his head, "It was a complete surprise when two weeks after the deadline Gozaburo had given, my student, who had given absolutely no signs of any vocal progression, was suddenly speaking with the voice of a young adult male. No cracks, no stumbling... It was flawless, as though he had sounded like this all his life. Classes continued as usual of course, but I couldn't help but think back to the change in his clothing... It was almost as though," Tanaka slowly said, the teen across from him wondering if he was talking to himself or not, "As though he was hiding something..."

 

"Wait..." Katsuya shook his head, eyebrows furrowed in his continuing confusion. Hiding something on his neck... Wasn't there something on the TV he passed to get to school about that? Some kind of operation a guy had gone through because of voice issues? "You're sayin that Kaiba's voice... 'S from a surgery?" That... That couldn't be possible right? He swallowed, unconsciously grabbing at his throat at the thought. "His dad had his voice changed just cause it hadn' broken yet..? Tha' what yer sayin'?" Heck, disappearing for a few weeks to come back and hide your neck permanently, that had to say something right? At least, when it was completely hidden, didn't it?

 

Tanaka nodded, sighing again. "Indeed. Though... I can't be completely certain... After all, I'm hardly sure that's legal but... That day I noticed for the first time that when Mokuba came in, he was instantly turned away. You should have seen the poor child's face," he continued, shaking his head. "As though someone had murdered his brother right in front of him. Mokuba-kun never came into the room during classes again after that, and from what I could tell something had snapped in his brother; something small, but just enough so that it affected... Well, to be perfectly blunt,” he said with almost a whisper, “Everything."

 

As Tanaka fell silent, Katsuya found himself looking at the clock again and standing up. Time was up. More than up, in fact...and by now, he was beginning to feel rather uncomfortable. "Er... Th-Thanks for yer time, Tanaka-san..." He bowed slightly, turning away. "I gotta go so..." The teen gave one last look at the professor, a clearly forced smile in place. "I'll keep this b'tween us, alrigh'?"

 

Us and the paper, he added mentally, a knot forming in his stomach with the thought. Them, the paper, and the teacher reading it. Maybe he should nix that last part of the 'interview'. It was hearsay anyway, and the paper was supposed to be his own opinion after all. Leaving out...this part would be fine, he was sure.

 

Leaving the library, Katsuya wondered what kind of events he'd set in motion by talking to the old man- he seemed almost... Haunted after that. Like the corpse of someone he'd killed had been pulled up before him, and the man had been forced to fess up to what he'd done.

 

And now it was his problem.

 

Walking home, Katsuya couldn't help but feel colder than he had inside the building itself.

 

* * *

 

As Katsuya sat a block away from Kaiba's house, he wondered what possessed him to come back here. He had enough, more than enough, for his assignment to be finished. In fact he thought with a frown, he'd actually handed it in already, and had since come to the conclusion that he was still going to fail Japanese and end up in deep shit down the line. Namely because in the end, all he'd really succeeded in doing was revealing a few facts that most people probably knew anyways (He never really did pay attention to pop-culture after all), and likely raise a few baffling questions without much of a base. Not to mention his guilty conscience had eventually convinced him to hold back half of the information he'd gathered to begin with- for something that was 'his point of view', he'd sure opted not to share most of it.

 

And yet he thought idly, he was still standing here.

 

In the now setting sun.

 

Outside of Kaiba's mansion.

 

The fact was, he really wanted to know what that briefcase thing was all about. So with another sigh, he dropped his bag and jacket in a bush along the fence, rubbing his arm as he looked over the wall. When was the last time he'd broken into a place, one year, two years? He didn't think he'd done anything since Hirutani's gang, but maybe he wouldn't be as rusty as he feared. Katsuya gulped, looking around nervously as he slipped into the alley created between the wall and the street itself. Scaling the wall with relative difficulty, he decided he'd simply have to 'hope'. Especially since he would have to do all of this with one still broken arm. Not that he couldn't, given the bet he'd taken years before to climb a tree with one arm and leg- that was hard. Back then however, he'd still had two good arms... If he hit anything coming down this time, he was in for a world of serious hurt.

 

Now then, he thought to himself as he looked around the tree. It sucked that he'd lied to Yugi about what he was doing, but the fact was this whole Kaiba thing was really starting to bug him. Not to mention, he mentally added- watching a guard to his round through the yard before hopping into a nearby bush- the guy had been returning his drifting stares during gym with a look that didn't seem angry, smug, or... Well damn it he didn't know what it was, but the closest he could come up with was confusion. An emotion that he was pretty sure Kaiba didn't feel. (Actually, he was beginning to wonder if the jerk had emotions to begin with.)

 

He pushed a few leaves aside from his face, looking at the cameras installed along the house. Sheesh, Katsuya thought as he ducked back into the bush. This place was a damned fortress. How the hell was he supposed to make it to one of those open second story windows? He waited for the motion sensing camera to hone on the watchman as he walked past, before quickly and silently making it to the next bush. Right, he thought as he scaled the tree beside it, taking cover in the leaves. So the ground obviously wasn't going to work with all the camera's and guards but-

 

He froze, looking past the trees in the fading light as he spotted one near a window. Well wasn't that something, Katsuya noticed- save maybe three windows, all of the ones above the ground floor were opened. He grinned, hardly believing his luck. Yes, he thought as he slowly fell back down to 'bush hop' between camera rounds to the nearest tree by a window. Yes! Now he could just hop in and with luck, find something to explain all this weird crap! All he'd have to do was make it to that tree without getting caught! As to what he expected to find, he wasn't sure- but it wasn't like it wouldn't be good, whatever it was.

 

Well, he quietly corrected, waiting for the guard to distract the camera again before scaling the tree. It couldn't be utterly horrific in any case... Right? Fairly glad for the fact that his target tree had branches which just about touched the ground, he quietly made his way up through the various boughs. His cheer however, was cut rather short. Katsuya pushed the leaves of the tree aside, scowling as he was met with glass. "Damn it," he hissed under his breath, wincing as he accidentally hit a branch with his cast. He could have sworn this window was open! Clutching his arm tightly as it seared with pain, he began to think over his options before sounds came from below. For a moment, he swore they were right beneath him, and Katsuya tensed- thousands of curses ran through his head as he bit his tongue, and through the fear he chanced a look through the leaves. He watched as flashlights began heading his way, finally screwing his eyes shut in hopes of waiting it out until the sounds vanished. Yet instead of coming toward him he realized with a frown, the increasing shouts had...moved away.

 

Katsuya opened his eyes, taking a breath and frowning. Whatever, he thought. It couldn't mean anything right? He turned to look at the window again, sighing. Man. That was one window down, but now he had to find another tr-

 

He froze as sounds came from in the room, a light suddenly pouring in from what he could now identify as a bedroom. Shit, he realized- this was Kaiba's fucking _bathroom_! No wonder the window was shut! Katsuya froze where he sat, completely tense as Kaiba's figure came out into the room. Well, he thought with a surge of success, at least this meant he'd probably get to see something in the room that cleared things...

 

Up?

 

The blond's eyes widened as a robe fell to the ground, and instead of things growing clearer, he was filled with nothing but alarm. Katsuya couldn't contain his shouts, falling out of the tree as the light from the other room illuminated more than enough to confuse the teen thoroughly. Shouts came from below as he fell to the ground with a sick, loud thud, the window he'd been looking into opening as well. The last thing he saw as his vision spun was a series of guards appearing to hold guns to his face.

 

'At least they aren't shooting', he idly told his throbbing head as he began to black out. The last thing he heard while his vision darkened however, came from above in the window- Kaiba's usual insulting voice telling them not to shoot, seeing as how they were obviously too late as it was. 'Thanks Kaiba', he dizzily thought. He really appreciated being kept alive.

 

Even in the growing dark however, these were not his last thoughts. His last thoughts instead lingered on what he'd seen as Kaiba had disrobed- likely with the intent to set up a shower. They lingered on the rounded form of small, but very clearly natural breasts, and on the visible curves of a waist that had absolutely lacked anything 'male' whatsoever in his mind. If it had been anyone else, he could have even thought the figure in his fading thoughts 'hot'. It wasn't 'anyone else', however. It was Seto Kaiba.

 

And apparently, unless they were preparing to tell them otherwise, Seto Kaiba was a woman.

 

It really was good, he decided as he finally greeted darkness completely, that he had handed in his report already.

 

* * *

 

The first thing he saw when he woke up was a blinding, yellowed light. This cleared quickly as he blinked, attempting to move only to find himself in more pain.

 

Katsuya winced, recalling his fall from the tree. He hadn't been wrong to figure he'd be in for a world of hurt had he fallen, he thought- and it was with that exact thought that he remembered just why he fell to begin with. The tree. The tree that had been in Seto Kaiba's yard and if this wasn't a dream, 'he' was a 'she'. Screwing his eyes shut, he wondered if he could possibly just die right there, before a clicking noise drew his attention to the side.

 

He probably shouldn't have turned toward it, now that he thought about it.

 

"Hi-HIHHH!" Katsuya jerked back, the barrel of a gun held almost directly against his face. Talk about answering to his thoughts really quickly! As he attempted to regain his breath, he looked at the one who was holding it. Kaiba. The woman was wearing pajamas now, but simply looking toward her brought back the memory of what he'd just recently seen. In some ways, he thought as his face flushed red, things made more sense now somehow. He wasn't even sure why it made more sense, but somehow it _did_ \- he just wished he could stop thinking of what he'd _seen_ , and focus on what he was _seeing, now_. Seto's voice- which was notably more feminine at the moment, albeit fairly hoarse from what he could tell (evidently the surgery theory was out the window)- did a better job at enforcing that focus.

 

"It took you long enough to wake up, Mutt." Kaiba's voice was filled with more loathing than he had ever thought possible, and the glare he- rather she- leveled toward him only drove the point further home. It was actually almost as frightening as, well... When he thought that professor guy he and Honda spent the night being chased by was a zombie. Which was likewise not an incident he ever wanted to relive. Katsuya swallowed, looking around the empty room in an attempt to look at something other than the barrel of a gun.

 

He was doing a poor job of it. "Ehe... Heh... Y-Yah know," he said nervously, having a feeling that attempting to argue with Kaiba for the moment would get a bullet through his skull for his

efforts, "You look... A lot different than I expected. And... Sound different too..." Katsuya had a feeling that was the wrong thing to say given that the gun was suddenly right against his temple, and as the cold metal touched against his skin he swallowed. "Oh god..."

 

Honestly he was just too beat to be dealing with this. "Just. Shut. Up. MUTT." As Katsuya gulped audibly, he slowly turned to listen to Kaiba's words. "Normally, I wouldn't hesitate to pull this trigger now, but lucky for you," she said with a sneer, "Not only do I know enough about you that I can make sure you won't say anything, but I'm actually wondering how the hell you made it to my bedroom window undetected with a broken arm!" She drew back, the gun held less-than-threateningly at the ceiling now as she narrowed her eyes. "So speak- or did your 'masters' not even teach you that trick?"

 

The blond sat up, growling. Alright, the dog joke had done it. Come on, Kaiba couldn't get away with murder, and he could take hi- her out with even one arm, he was sure of it! "Kaiba..! Gk-!" The gun was quickly pointed back, and he swallowed again. Scratch that thought, he hurriedly decided. Scratch all those thoughts. Right. Now. "Alrigh, alrigh'! I'll talk but...” He shrugged, as best he could without sending pain through his shoulders. “All I did was jump the fence and hide in the bushes..." Kinda pathetic actually.

 

Her eyes continued to narrow, the scowl a seemingly permanent fixture on the woman's face. "I have cameras, and guards Mutt. How did you do it?" Yes, how did he do that if the security was so great? Katsuya tensed, drawing back against the headboard of the bed he was in. Idly wondering if this was how all 'prisoners of war' were treated by Kaiba, he frowned.

 

"I told yah! The only other thing I did was wait for th' cameras to follow the guards! After that I was just looking for a way in!" Belatedly, he realized he might have been better off not mentioning that.

 

"And what for," she said with a snarl. "Besides the little unintentional peep show you found at my window? For which, just so you know, you WILL be punished for..." Another string of curses rushed through his mind and Katsuya swallowed, before he muttering something under his breath. Kaiba crossed her arms, giving a low and unimpressed growl. "What was that, dog? I didn't hear you over the barking."

 

_Enough with the DOG comments!_ "I said I was wonderin' what the heck the briefcase thing was about alrigh'!" He silently prayed that Kaiba didn't go too much deeper into this; if she found out that this all started with a makeup assignment for Japanese, he was not only royally fucked, but so was his teacher. And... Well, he kinda liked that teacher. He didn't get a lot of people giving him chances like that. "It was buggin' me," he grumbled, looking away. “...Figured I'd get the answer looking around in here...” Thankfully, this much was true- and it seemed as though the honesty proved appeasing enough an excuse.

 

The woman scoffed, crossing her legs. "Of course a mongrel like you would do something so stupid over that." She rolled her eyes, before re-aiming the gun at Katsuya's head while the blond went ghost white. "Now then, seeing how that's over-"

 

"Nee-sama!" A panicked, half-ear piercing shout came through the air, a thunder of footsteps interrupting the woman. "Nee-"

 

The pair turned as Mokuba ran in, a few maids running behind the boy worriedly. Katsuya had to blink a few times before he realized it was him- the boy was haggard, and looked as though he hadn't gotten any sleep for at least a week. Not to mention the tear-stains on his face. As the boy came in to look at the two, he frowned.

 

"I mean," he said with a cough, doing his best to look halfway presentable. "Nii-sama, what's going on here..?" Another scoff, and she waved the maids off with a hand. The women appeared to freeze for a moment, before scurrying off to leave their employer with her business.

 

"Just 'work' Mokuba," she said dismissively, before turning back to Katsuya. Her expression was cold, and so devoid of emotion that for a brief moment, the blond thought his captor to be robotic. "Nothing more." Well fuck, he wasn't seriously going to die was he! Mokuba looked between the two with an open mouth, as though about to say something. Katsuya however, decided to speak first, plucking up a small bit of courage with the boy's presence.

 

"'S alright Mokuba," he said with a pained shrug. "I know about th' whole sister thing..." While the younger of the Kaiba's fixed the blond with a surprised, if not possibly impressed stare, his older sister's gaze merely hardened. He coughed awkwardly, before looking at Mokuba again. "Nyh... What happened to you though?" It felt much better to speak to the boy as if Kaiba wasn't there. Even if it likely increased his chances at getting a death sentence.

 

The boy was silent for a moment, looking at the ground. "...Yugi... He..." Before he could deign Katsuya's expression of shock and disbelieving horror with a response, he placed himself between Kaiba's gun and the blond. Frowning, the boy managed a false look of courage and determination. "But that's not the problem," he said tensely. "What I want to know is what's going on!"

 

This kid... Had balls, he decided, facing an armed Kaiba in his condition. True they were related- but at this point in time he wasn't sure that actually registered with the woman. For a moment, Katsuya wondered what the hell had happened that made it so that not seeing each other for a week wasn't more important than 'interrogating him'. Not being shot in the face was a little higher on the priorities list however, so the blond decided to press the matter later. When the kid's older sister wasn't there, perhaps. And... When he'd had some sleep, because his entire body was really sore now that he thought about it.

 

Kaiba scoffed as Mokuba stood firm between them, but nonetheless put the gun down. "Hnp," she said with a scowl, evidently willing to humor the boy this time. "This _mutt_ managed to get past our apparently inferior cameras and guards to make it to my bathroom window." The gaze intensified, Kaiba crossing her arms and clutching them in her fists tightly. "He then managed to get himself caught by falling out of the tree once he spotted me inside..." She wasn't mentioning that he saw her naked. That was a plus to this he decided. Um, Mostly.

 

Bathroom still kind of implied something. Mokuba turned to look at Katsuya again, before turning back. "He made it past the cameras AND the guards?" he questioned. At the disgruntled frown he received in response, he shrunk slightly. "Right... Well..." He turned to look at the bed-ridden teen, crossing his arms. "Even I have to admit that's pretty impressive..." Well. He did have a broken arm, so it was either 'impressive' or... Security was seriously worth crap here.

 

"Impressive isn't my word for it Mokuba," the boy's sister said curtly. Aha! They had the same thoughts- Wait, that wasn't good.

 

Mokuba appeared to ignore his sister for once, shrugging to the woman's surprise. "Maybe so, but doesn't that say something about what a professional could do? We need to up our security Nee-sama! I told you that!" There was some grumbling, and Katsuya raised an eyebrow at the exchange. He turned back, smirking. "Hey, Jonouchi," he said with an odd look in his eyes. "You're the school's exception to the 'no jobs rule' right?"

 

"Yea, tha's ri-" He tensed up, scowling. "Hey, how th' hell did you know that!" After all, that was probably not a common subject that these two shared. Behind the boy, Seto rolled her eyes.

 

"Please Mutt, you can tell just looking at you." Ignoring the questioning shout about his appearance,

 

Mokuba rolled his own eyes. "Oh come on," he said with a groan. "Just listen! Now then, Jonouchi," he continued, smirking again. "What would you say to working with the security cameras during the after school hours of the week? Maybe even an evening on the weekend?"

 

...What.

 

As Katsuya's eyes practically broke out of their sockets (He was being offered a job at KAIBA'S? Because he unintentionally peeped on her? Who he didn't even know was a 'her' until now?), Seto snarled. "Excuse me," she demanded as she stood up from the chair. "You're offering this moron to _work_ here?" Yes. Yes Mokuba was, and he was very very happy about it all things aside. ...Or he would be, if he didn't die soon.

 

Mokuba shrugged again, turning to his sister. "Of course... Besides maybe getting things done with the security, it might help with 'other things'," he said. Katsuya idly noticed that the boy had purposely placed emphasis on those last two words... But he couldn't tell what that really meant. It didn't sound good. It must have meant something good for Kaiba though, for at that moment the woman smirked. And whatever could earn that reaction from Kaiba, couldn't mean anything he'd enjoy.

 

"Alright then," she said, walking over to the door. "Do what you want..." As she left the room, she sent a narrowed glare to Katsuya before continuing. "But keep in mind that dogs who can't learn to obey their masters will find themselves on the streets without a home. And as for you," she said as she turned to her brother. "We'll talk about where you've been later." With that, the woman left, presumably to continue to her bed.

 

The chilling tone she'd used still hung in the air however, leaving a cold room in its place. As the woman disappeared, Katsuya turned to watch Mokuba climb onto the bed with a miserable expression. "Hey," the blond said hesitantly, breaking the silence. "That job... Are yah..." He choked, attempting to prop himself up on his left arm before continuing. "Are yah serious?" Hell, he couldn't be right?

 

But Mokuba nodded. "Course," he said with a detached shrug. "Keeps you alive doesn't it? Now that Nee-sama has leverage over Yu... You after all." He leaned back in the chair, giving a shudder. Leverage over 'Yu'? He was going to pray that didn't mean Yugi and just nod.

 

"Hey kid," the teen said as he got closer to the boy. "You alrigh'? I mean..." He swallowed, before continuing. "If you've been gone for a week... How did... I mean, yah said Yugi,” Katsuya added, coughing through his disbelief. “What did he..." Was Yugi even capable of anything? Seriously? Because... Mokuba looked broken to say the least. And while he didn't even hesitate in the thought that Yugi wouldn't hurt a speck of dust... That look was genuine. You could not fake that, not matter how hard you tried.

 

The boy sighed, shaking his head. "I wanted to... Prove to her that I could be strong too..." He sniffed, wiping his eyes as his listener frowned. "I wanted her to look at me and smile like we used too back then. So I thought, if I won a game against Yugi..." A choking noise, and Mokuba curled in on himself with wide and distant eyes. "It.. It was so dark... I couldn't see anyone, or hear anyone, and no one was coming for me... I called for my big sister," he said as he cried, shaking at the memories of the last week. "I called for someone, anyone, but no one came..! No one could come..! No one..."

 

Mokuba tensed as he was pulled over by one healthy arm and one relatively uninjured one. "Hey," Katsuya said, using comforting 'big brother' tones that he hadn't used since he was younger than 10. "I's alrigh, ok? Everythin's alrigh... Whatever happened, 's over now..."

 

Damn it, Katsuya thought as the boy clung to him, acting the age he should have been if not possibly younger. Everything was so messed up now. Yugi forgetting things, Yugi's forgetting what was happening during a supposed match with Seto, that match spurring Mokuba to create one, said end result doing... This to Mokuba. Seto being a girl, him seeing Seto _naked_ for that matter, him getting a _job_ for seeing Seto naked...

 

He cut his thoughts there, deciding not to tempt fate on where those last thoughts could bring him once he got some sleep. As he held the boy close, Katsuya felt himself stare off to the wall, unsure of what to do. All he could think of at this point was that he regretted ever wishing for more excitement in his life.

 


	6. Chapter 4 | My House is Your House

In the aftermath of that evening, a lot had changed for Katsuya. Granted, a lot had changed more recently thanks to that 'one night', but he decided that was hardly the point. Sighing as Kaiba walked past with a warning glare, he shoved his shoes into his locker and repressed a shudder and groan all at once. Damn it, why did things have to be this way? Everything that should have made more sense simply became more confusing in one go! His faith wasn't wavering, but because of that things seemed to have gotten even worse! He knew that it would get better in the end- hell, he _needed_ to know it would get better. But in the back of his mind, his thoughts drifted.

 

After calming Mokuba down, two things had happened. One, he'd been shown the security room he'd work in, along with being handed a few things he'd need for the job after signing papers. It had been explained to him that he was going to be paid 1200 Yen per hour- almost 250 more than the average pay- to sit at a desk and make sure no one weird came on the camera screens. Which quite honestly, was a really big jump from his usual work in labor. Granted, Mokuba had said once his arm healed he'd be switching for grounds-duty occasionally... But even that would be nothing he couldn't handle, given the scrapes he'd gotten himself into in the past.

 

Over all it hardly mattered. What was important was that he had a job again, he was getting paid, and maybe after he had all of his dad's debts paid off the two of them could be a family again. Speaking of healing, he thought as he headed for class, the kid had managed to pull a fast one on him with some sort of hidden slip in the form he'd signed; in he was 'injured in such a manner that work ability could be affected' (a category which absolutely covered broken arms), he was essentially forced to stay at Kaiba's house. At first, he figured this was just another way of keeping him quiet- it would be much easier to control who he spoke to if he was spending the evenings under the same roof after all. However, he decided as he sat down in the class room, it could also just be Mokuba being clingy toward his 'new friend', like he had the day they met.

 

It meant he would be sneaking into his house once the arm was healed but... Well the paycheck would probably distract his old man long enough, and assuming the guy sloshed for the time it just meant he'd have to dodge a clumsily tossed bottle at worst. Until then he tried not to think about why the hell Mokuba wanted him to stay at the house so bad.

 

Leaning back on his chair and pushing that from mind, Katsuya jumped slightly as Yugi came over. "Good Morning, Jonouchi-kun," he said in his usual cheery tone. For a brief, very brief moment he hadn't answered. He'd just stood there, frozen, looking at the kid that was his best friend and remembered what Mokuba had cried out during his emotional breakdown. Which brought his thoughts to point number two.

 

' _Dark_ ', he'd said, Katsuya not knowing what the hell he was talking about. ' _So dark... Dark..._ '. It wasn't until he'd asked about the kid's favourite game- CapMon- in an attempt to calm him down, that he'd really figured out what 'dark' meant. As far as Mokuba had been aware, he had been trapped in a CapMon capsule for the entire week. How the hell was that even possible, he had wondered? For a week especially. Supposedly passing food through a wall Mokuba could only see, and helping to move him beyond that, was the most that could be done at the time. Mokuba had completely believed he was stuck in a tiny egg-shaped capsule, and he had believed on top of this that there was no way for him to escape. The boy would probably not be touching that game for a while... If not for the rest of his life, he was certain.

 

As Katsuya stared at his friend however he blinked, before shaking it off with a small laugh and smile. There was no way after all, no damn way Yugi could do something like that! It sounded so impossible, so utterly bizarre that it had to be a nightmare, and yet...

 

And yet there was something in that kid's voice that just couldn't convince him he was lying either. It was just so...

 

So...

 

"...Mornin' Yugi," he said with his usual, slang filled accent, smile widening despite current worries gathering in the back of his mind. "How are yah?" Hopefully his voice didn't completely betray his feelings right now. He didn't think he'd have it in him to try explaining why he was feeling what he did. But the boy beamed, apparently missing the depressive mood his friend had briefly held.

 

"I'm great Jonouchi-kun!" For a moment however, Yugi looked slightly saddened despite this- And for a brief few seconds, Katsuya wondered if he'd caught the pause in his words. He was quickly proven wrong. "It was kinda boring with out you yesterday," the boy began. "Honda-kun kept on staring at passing girls, so Anzu-chan spent most of the night getting angry at him... I ended up just watching them over and over again, aha..." Oh, well if it was just that then it was alright he supposed. Yugi then blinked, before looking back from the ground to Katsuya. "That reminds me," he said with an encouraging smile. "How did the job interview go?"

 

"Er..." He blinked, completely caught off guard for a moment. Job interview? He didn't even know he'd have one that d- Ohhhh yea. He'd told Yugi he was goin' for a job interview that evening. And... Ironically that was pretty much what he did. Fate had a hell of a way with things didn't it? Well- he would have to explain his new job at some point, so there was no time like the present. "It was great! You'll never guess where I'm workin'!"

 

A voice from behind Yugi appeared, and Katsuya turned as Anzu showed up. "Hn? You got a job Jonouchi-kun..?"

 

Honda as well came over, rubbing his head. "About time man... But who the hell hired you with that thing," he asked, pointing at the cast on Katsuya's arm with a raised eyebrow. "Seriously, I thought you were only getting hired for labor work in the past."

 

He laughed slightly, grin still in place. Well, they weren't wrong... But regardless of circumstance, it was still pretty decent pay; compared to the usual costs, he might stand a chance at salvaging the bills now, not to mention stave off the lone-sharks. He couldn't be brought down by the 'cons' of the matter. "Got a job on a security team," he said with a grin, though it was partially forced as he continued. "At rich-boy's mansion..."

 

Shortly after he said 'rich boy', he tensed slightly, as though having been smacked over the head. Right he told himself, not a boy- that much had been confirmed from conversation with Mokuba and even Kaiba herself. Except then again, he was still expected to _pretend_ that was the case.

 

...Shit, this was hard. This would probably be even weirder once the lady showed up in the room and reminded him of it all too. He chose not to even think of that for the moment, instead watching the reactions of his friends instead. The three balked, Yugi in particular blinking a few times as the other two took over in terms of shocked responses. "Wait... What?" Honda was first, scowling. "You got a job with him? That asshole?"

 

Katsuya ducked slightly, as his friend's voice had almost certainly reached Kaiba's ears- in fact, given Yugi's worried glance, the woman was currently looking over at him now, having since entered the room to take her own seat. And the look was probably not something he would want to see; it was probably best he not turn around for the entire day if he valued his life in fact. He wasn't sure if he could get fired for this of course- Mokuba was the one who hired him, not his sister. And his sister wasn't about to replace Mokuba's position as VP and 'little brother', however little she appeared to care at the moment. When he thought about it, the fact that Mokuba had yet to even hesitate on the topic of the job offer seemed to be irritating the woman to no end...a fairly incredible stroke of luck for him, given that his alternative would be hoping paper delivery worked out with one arm.

 

"H-Hey," he said, rubbing his head with a nervous laugh. "I know he's pretty out there but... Could y' try not t' dis my boss when he's right there?"

 

Anzu blinked, looking over at Kaiba a moment before turning back. " _He_ hired you? I thought you two hated each other Jonouchi. Not to mention," she added with a narrow-eyed frown, "How is he the one who hired you if he's in class?" YES. That question! Aha. Well, if he could answer that properly without getting everyone shot, he would. For the moment however he just shrugged it off, shaking his head as though it were nothing at all.

 

"Long story, trust me," Katsuya said with a slight yawn. Damn it, he hadn't gotten any sleep last night, he muttered in the back of his mind. Oh well. "Anyways," he went on, "He technically isn't the one that hired me, but he's still my boss in a way..." As the others shrugged, the blond looked down at Yugi a moment. If he didn't bring it up now, he probably wouldn't get the chance again. So if he wanted answers, he'd have to ask now. "Oh hey, tha' reminds me... Kaiba's kid brother, Mokuba... He mentioned you at one point Yug, what was that about?"

 

Please please please don't say anything about forgetting, he pleaded in his mind. _Please_...

 

His friend jumped slightly, eyes wide as if remembering something rather horrific before frowning. "I'm not actually sure," he finally said after a short bout of silence. "He'd forced me into playing CapMon with him but..." the boy paused a second, before continuing. "We never did..."

 

Looking at Yugi's eyes, there was no trace of any deception. Hell, Katsuya told himself as the teacher came in to begin the class, there wasn't even a hesitant moment to consider it as best he could tell. Yugi was innocent, and in some ways even childlike in his morals. He just wasn't capable of inflicting that sort of harm. Yet the 'magic memory jump before a game' pattern had held true, he realized with an internal curse. Yugi wasn't lying, that was certain- and yet, he thought with a shudder, Mokuba's reaction was... Far too haunting, far too real to be a lie as well. It was so confusing...

 

The thoughts ended up cycling through his head even as he left the others at school's end to head off to Kaiba's mansion for his first night at work, a hollow smile carved into his face as he did so. He really liked his friends, and saw them as nothing else but... Why did it feel like something was going to go terribly wrong sooner or later? To the point where things like Hirutani became a laughing matter?

 

* * *

 

Work was pretty cool, he thought to himself a few days later. In fact, he decided with a grin as he left the doctor's office, it was really cool. His mood for the matter might have been helped by his cast finally coming off of course. Not that this had anything to do with his job. Katsuya flexed his right arm with a grin, intending to take full advantage of his first day off with his healed arm. "Alrigh'!" He cheered as he ran beside Yugi, the boy grinning as he ran slightly to keep up with him. "Finally rid of that thing!" He would never ever see it again! Never! Which was good because he'd been getting a little tired of the invisible glares he got at Kaiba's house. Seeing the woman in person was one thing- but for the entire time he was there it felt almost like she was just leering at him from behind the last corner he turned, everywhere he went.

 

Not that he was letting that bring him down when he'd just gotten out of course. "This is great," Yugi said as he ran beside his friend. "You can finally start writing things properly, and play duel monsters again!" The amount of time the pair had for gaming had decreased considerably since the broken arm, and at the moment, the friendship was feeling considerably renewed with the cast's removal. Though he wasn't so sure about Duel Monsters at the moment, he absolutely refused to miss out on the time to play.

 

He nodded, before turning to his friend and holding his completely honest grin in place. As days had passed during his short, albeit forced stay at Kaiba's, the topic of Yugi had faded fairly quickly. It seemed almost as though Mokuba was attempting to distract him with something else whenever he got off work, the boy pulling him off for some kind of game with him until it was time for the younger of the pair to turn in. It didn't leave much time for homework, on those nights; as it was, work was the only other way he'd gotten out of those moments (much as he didn't actually mind spending the time with the kid).

 

Amidst all of this however it was almost as though he was planning something, something that continued pushing against the more paranoid areas of the back of his mind from just a year and a bit prior. In the end he hadn't bothered acting on those theories. Mostly because the fact was, the kid truly believed that his best friend had somehow trapped him in the equivalent of a giant egg. So he could understand why the topic should probably be dropped, along with why there would be looks just shy of what could be called loathing when the topic returned.

 

"Hey," he decided, continuing the conversation he had with Yugi as he shook the thoughts from mind. "You wanna go to the arcade? Yah know, t' celebrate?"

 

The boy beamed, immediately nodding in response. "Hah! Do I ever!" As they approached the place, Katsuya flexed his right arm a few times more before pushing the door open to let them both in.

 

"Heheheee... Now that my right arm's in workin' order again, I'll have a clean shot at beating 'KAI's records!"

 

Yugi blinked. "Kai..?" The unsaid question was a little obvious really. 'Who was Kai..?' "Are those the initials on the machines..?"

 

He put his hands in his pockets, nodding. "Yea- an' he holds a complete monopoly over the arcade th' jerk!" Katsuya gestured over to a nearby shooting game, where 'KAI's high score was currently flashing to an annoyed player. "An' since all these are connected throughout th' country wirelessly, this KAI guy is the best gamer in all Japan! Racin', fightin', you name it!" He grinned, moving over to one of the fighting games and continuing. "So... If I beat 'm, that'll make me the best gamer in Japan!" And then people would be complaining about 'JOU'! Or something along those lines.

 

A pair of kids burst into a fit of laughter as they passed, catching the last few words of the conversation. "Seriously," one of them said, eyebrows raised high in amusement. "You think you can beat Kaiba-sama at these games?"

 

The shorter of the teens blinked, while Katsuya reeled back. Oh come on... _Really?_ "Kaiba," Yugi began in obvious surprise. "As in Seto Kaiba-kun?" he asked politely. Katsuya in the meantime was inwardly groaning; it was _her_ , he told himself as he winced. He would have to beat _her_. And she _would_ have all the highest scores in Japan wouldn't she? It'd be just his luck that her obsessions would cover that.

 

The boys nodded, ignoring Katsuya's grimace and mutterings as they answered Yugi's question. "That's right," they began eagerly. "The older of the Kaiba brother's is a gaming GENIUS!" The one beside the first grinned, continuing to mutter away with praise as Katsuya frowned. Kaiba was oddly famous among small children, now that he was paying attention to it. "Kaiba-sama's our hero," the first of the children was cheering, face red with what was likely childish adoration and awe. "Although," he said, trailing off as he shared a glance with his friend. "Recently, he's stopped playing the games here..."

 

The other one shrugged. "Probably because it's so boring... There's no opponent worthy of Kaibasama after all!"

 

The first boy smirked in agreement quickly, nodding. "Got that right," he said as he looked up at Katsuya. "If you plan to beat any of these scores, you'll be here forever! Though if you're interested," he added with a somewhat thoughtful expression. "I heard a rumor recently..."

 

The teens blinked, sharing a glance. A rumor..? "What kinda rumor?" Katsuya finally asked, voice as loud as ever. Impatiently he added, "C'mon, spit it out!"He'd only heard the word 'rumor' and he was latching on! Why couldn't it be someone else this centered on?!

 

The boy's grins widened, short laughter coming from both. "Supposedly," the second began, "Kaiba-sama has been working on 'The Ultimate Game'! Something the world has never seen ever before!"

 

'Never before seen' eh..? As the pair suddenly turned to see something and run off, Katsuya blinked, briefly staring up at the ceiling in thought. Hn. "Ultimate game..?" And boy, didn't those kids leave at a convenient time! Now this would be bugging him for the next month... And he had just gotten out from under Kaiba's roof! Not that he would be attempting to ask the woman anyway, mind. And he doubted Mokuba had a clue, given how much time the boy had with his sister to talk about anything in a light mood.

 

Yugi looked up at him, blinking as well. "You know anything about that Jonouchi-kun? I mean, you do work for him..."

 

He snorted, shaking his head. "Yeah I work for 'm, but I only report to his kid brother remember? I don't have a clue what those two were goin' on about..." Katsuya growled as he turned to one of the games, before cracking his knuckles. "I'll show those twerps," he said with a scowl, before grinning. "C'mon Yug', lets play some games!" Linking 'KAI' to Kaiba just had him more determined! The shorter one nodded, smiling.

 

"Yeah!"

 

* * *

 

It really figured he thought as he trudged home, that he didn't come close to beating any of the scores. "Maaaaan," he said with a groan, kicking a can as he came up to the house. "What's with that lady an' being the so called King-a-everythin' anyways?" He adjusted his grip on his bag, before looking up the stairs to his apartment with a gulp. Here he went... It'd been a week and two days since he'd been home, and his dad would no doubt be absolutely livid. With luck, he'd be asleep; it would be easier to deal with his father during the hangover phase, and he could at least make sure no accidents happened during that time. There was a crunch of cans from inside as he approached the door however, and Katsuya winced. Nope. Not asleep. Maybe he should stay out for-

 

He shook his head, steeling himself. What would come would come, he'd just have to take it like a man, as he always had. Besides, he told himself as he fished for his key, keeping a careful eye out for his old man, the worst that had happened in the past had just healed over right? It couldn't get any worse than that! He'd just have to dodge the bottles if they were thrown, and whatever else was in the way and get into his room as fast as possible. Same song and dance as always. As he walked into the apartment and looked forward, he couldn't have been more wrong. "There yeh are," the drunk slur of his father stated from around the corner, Katsuya flinching as he caught the pathetic tone of his father's 'weepy' state. "Where th' hell have yah been these past days," his father moaned, half hanging off the kitchen counter across him. Well. Earning money for the bills mostly. But when he tried calling to explain that, there wasn't an answer either... "I try an' cook... Try an' cook, so tha' you c'n eat," the old man continued to slur, pointing the frying pan he held almost accusingly forward. "An' instead yer gone f'r a week... An... An..."

 

He thought he'd defended himself pretty well in terms of excuses; very well actually, given the brief moment his father stumbled forward in his ramble about how worried he was. But then the frying pan ended up flying out of the man's hands, loose grip failing as his father tripped over a discarded can. Metal struck nothing but his arms- but as he fell backward over the railing to the stairway of his apartment, it was clear that was all it took. A faded scream echoed in his ears, and Katsuya didn't know how damn lucky he was that he'd forgotten his textbooks with Yugi again. Or that the neighbors had thrown out their futons, leaving them piled at the bottom of the stairs. It was especially lucky that he'd only been semi-conscious falling down, clipping his head against the rail he'd fallen over; leaving him unable to hear anything but dull white noise for those few moments as he keeled backward.

 

Idly, he wished he could thank whoever sent the sirens as he swam in and out of consciousness, the worried cries of realization from his father only dully acknowledged by his stunned brain. Either way... Whether it was Yugi borrowing a cellphone or a moment of sobriety from his depressed dad, he was glad to pass out knowing that he wouldn't end up sleeping there. Something told him that if they hadn't, getting to work on time the next day would have been the least of his issues.

 

* * *

 

White light. Katsuya squinted against the harshness of it, idly wondering how many times he'd wake up to this before he could just sleep and wake in his normal, tiny-ass bedroom for once. But no. He had to be here.

 

In a fucking hospital bed.

 

He blearily looked around, before frowning. Hang on what? Hospital? Who called him in? His dad might have if he'd gotten sobered up enough to realize he fell, but he was also more likely to pull him back into the apartment and lay him on the couch to recover, so that couldn't be right. His dad might have had a heart in there, but he was still a bit too sloshed to figure out when getting an ambulance might help in those moments. So then who? He could remember hearing a faint shout at least, someone distantly familiar as well so... Yugi, perhaps? The teen shot up at the thought, before instantly regretting it as he grabbed his middle.

 

"Achkkk..." Oh god... Oh god his stomach... It was on fire...

 

"Yeah," came a familiar voice beside the bed, sounding notably annoyed. "I wouldn't try sitting if I were you." Katsuya turned, frowning as he recognized Mokuba's usual mop of hair. Him..? Why was he here though? He opened his mouth to speak, before noting that the boy was currently the only one in the room. Alright. That was even weirder, he thought to himself. Yugi was the one that called an ambulance for him wasn't he? So why was Mokuba here then? He was pulled from his thoughts as the boy began speaking again, a thick scowl set over his face. "You know," he growled darkly, "Generally when you have something fixed, you don't break it the day it's fully repaired!" Oh come on, not his fault... The boy sighed as Katsuya again winced, before continuing on. "Jonouchi... Do you know how close to dead you were? Two words, Jonouchi," the boy stated with a frown. "Internal. Bleeding. What hit you, a truck?" Close?

 

He grunted, wincing as he tried to move again before giving up and laying back on the bed. "Ehh... Ground I think..." And a crappy futon, from three floors up. Which in hindsight, probably saved his ass more than it broke it. He really had some fucked up luck didn't he? And besides that, what was it that Mokuba just said? Internal bleeding? He didn't break anything, but he managed that?

 

Mokuba rolled his eyes at the 'smart' remark, shaking his head. "Tch. Well, whatever I guess. I had my guys get your stuff from that place and move them to mine," he told him with a grin, watching Katsuya's face shift into an expression of horror.

 

"H-HEH?" He stared at the boy, shaking his head. What- "Y... What the hell are yah sayin," he protested, eyes wide. It hurt too much to bring anger into his voice- frankly he wasn't even sure he could manage anything beyond shock, with how unbelievable the entire statement was. "I can't move out! I gotta pay off the bills first, get th' loan sharks off my Dad's case and-" He froze, noticing that Mokuba's look was becoming increasingly murderous as he spoke and drawing back. "Nyhhh..." That look was way too familiar to a certain other relative of this kid... But come on, wasn't this just a little bit overkill? This would only make things worse, not better, his dad was worried damn it!

 

Nonetheless his only answer was a furious scowl, the boy grinding his teeth in more than obvious rage. "Tch... I don't care," he said, shaking his head. "I can cover those fees- your 'dad' can figure himself out from there. But did you ever even think about what's in that place?" Katsuya wasn't given a change to respond to that, and from the persisting tone, Mokuba had decided that the bottles on the floor along with the sorry state of most of their furniture made for a reason to pull him out no matter the argument he received. There was more than anger there however- there was a fear, a deep fear that held Katsuya's own tongue close, preventing an argument from rising in his throat. "I... I don't care what my 'brother' says this time," he hissed, shaking as he spoke. "No one should live in a place like that! No one!"

 

Katsuya stared, unable to find something to say. Something in his voice seemed deadly familiar now, and his mind fought between the desire to find out what, and the desire to actually speak. "Mokuba," he finally said, looking up from his flat position on the hospital bed. "Why are you..." Why was he so set on this? A silence fell over the pair, before the boy got off the chair with a huff.

 

"Hn! Whatever," he said. "No arguments! From now on, you live at my house, understand?" the boy insisted. As Katsuya groaned from the pillow in response his employer turned to leave the room, continuing on. "I... I take care of my employees," he told the teen, back turned to him as he bowed his head. What? The blond frowned, turning somewhat to look at where the boy stood. Shaking... He was shaking still, but why was that? "I take care of them... Just like my big s... My big brother told me to before he... Before..." His fists clenched, and he turned to look at Katsuya with a fierce stare. "Get better, alright," he shouted, eyes wide. "Promise me, Jonouchi!" Silence again settled, with Katsuya too shocked to speak for a moment. Obviously something had this kid set on this. Something big, something he didn't know about- something that gave enough reason for a free offer against piles of debt for nothing but continued contact in return. No matter how much he wanted to find some way to take that and stay in his father's apartment, he could tell from the fiery pain over his body that he was going to be here for a while regardless. So finally, he nodded, forcing a weak smile on his face to at least cheer the other up. "Yeah," he said with a short nod. "Promise." Whatever happened... He could at least honour this kid's word and avoid the hospital bed he supposed.

 

The smile fell from his face as soon as Mokuba left.

 

* * *

 

Katsuya didn't know which was worse of the three things that happened when he finally got out of the hospital. 'Finally' of course being a loose term; though internal bleeding was severe, and he now had one hell of a bruise on his stomach, he'd apparently been semi-conscious enough that nothing had been broken. Therefore the most they'd had to do was stop the bleeding, replace his lost blood, and give him two days to recover. So there went his weekend.

 

Still, he had to note that his dumb luck sure had a habit of coming at the weirdest of times. So that was issue one; it was Monday, his homework wasn't done, and school was otherwise as crappy as ever. Not that he had the best luck finishing his homework on a good day, but he had really planned to try this time! He was going to do it! ...Possibly, at least.

 

Issue two on the other hand was more present, focusing on the fact that once he'd entered the school building again, he was tackled by Yugi. And as much as he liked the guy, being tackled around the waist with a bruise like his hurt like hell; so he'd spent the rest of the day constantly being asked if there was something he (rather, Yugi) could do to solve matters. Naturally in return, Katsuya was left to persistently reassure the other that really he was _fine_. He'd just be sitting out of gym class again, possibly for another day or so after.

 

Karita was going to have a fit, damn it.

 

Of course, following this there was issue three, which didn't completely take effect until after school. It had been bad enough that Kaiba seemed to be delivering the strongest 'death glare' he had ever seen throughout the day- a statement that was certainly saying something, considering the looks she'd given him after the night at the window. Somehow it seemed, the worse actually had yet to come as the gaze had only increased in intensity when her eyes appeared from behind the back window of her car. As Katsuya said good bye to the others and began to walk off, Kaiba's car pulled up beside him long enough for the stare to set in and the door to open outward.

 

"Get in. Now."

 

That was about all the woman said as she sat in the passenger seat, back door opening forward while she leered in the shadows. "Nyhh..." He opted against walking for the sake of spite, deciding to humor the possibly murderous woman for the moment. Swallowing nervously before hopping in, the drive proceeded with relative silence until they got to the mansion. As soon as they got out, Kaiba motioned for the anxious blond to follow. For a moment he was reminded of when he was a kid- when he'd done something wrong, and was being pulled aside to another room to be scolded.

 

As he followed the teen to another room however, he had a feeling this was going to be much worse. Alarm bells were ringing in his mind as Seto closed the door behind them, Katsuya quickly flushing pale as the 'death glare' was fixed on him again. "What did you tell him?" the woman stated bluntly, dropping the disguised voice and replacing it with her usual hoarse one.

 

He blinked. "W-Wait what?" He hadn't expected that question somehow, and even after thinking it over it still confused him. Seto grabbed the nearest chair, sliding it over to Katsuya before taking a seat herself.

 

"My brother, you moron. What. Did you do." The teen frowned. Oh, so that was what it was about eh? In that case, everything was fine.

 

FINE. "Nothin' that you shouldn't have Kaiba," he shouted with a scowl. "Ain't my fault your kid brother saw fit tah pull me into your life some more!" Honestly, did she actually think _he_ asked for this? She was the one ignoring the kid to the point where this was happening to begin with! Kaiba scoffed, rolling her eyes before fixing her target with the 'look' again.

 

"Shut up for a minute Mutt, and let me explain. Seeing how it's clearly so complex, your brain can't wrap around it at all." Crossing her legs and arms, the teen continued. "What I want to know is why my little brother is so enamoured with you- just what it is that suddenly has him so obsessively clinging to someone like _you_ , who walked in off the streets!"

 

Katsuya growled, clenching his fists. Oh so this was it then? "Yeah yeah yeah, so I'm a 'back alley mutt'... I got it!" Ignoring the large number of relatively identical insults tossed at him, he huffed before slouching back on his chair. "Sheesh, I don' know why he's doin' it! That's your job ain't it?" At Kaiba's still increasing glare, he silently pondered that random quote Anzu had mentioned from an English text of hers. What was it again, 'Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned'? Maybe this was what it meant- at least he didn't feel so scared about it anymore. "Look Kaiba," he finally said after scratching a bit of hair out of his face. "I don' know what's wrong with yah, and quite honestly, I don' think that I'd care normally. But why the heck does someone who doesn't even care about their little brother suddenly jump up when that he says he's bringing a friend home to stay?" What was it, some sort of possession deal? Weird as it was, he could at least make sense of it if his reasoning was focused on 'pissing off big sis' through his presence. He didn't agree with the idea obviously...but it could make sense.

 

The woman's knuckles were white, her fingers digging into her arms before she stood. "Because," she said with a scowl, "That 'someone' just happens to be a no good stray who can't keep his nose out of someone else's business!" She walked forwards, grabbing the arms of Katsuya's chair and leaning in to look the blond in the eye. "My brother is _MY_ brother. You'll do well to remember your place as his employee, and not some pathetic friend to drag him away from what matters." Was that care, or just the 'CEO' talking again? He couldn't tell, with all the mixed signals he was seeing between the pair. Katsuya's thoughts were cut short however- she was really close, he noted with an awkward cough. Really close, something he wasn't even sure had occurred to her. For a brief moment, Katsuya couldn't stop looking downward; sure, whatever should have been there was still bound tight against Kaiba's skin but... By all definitions, Seto's boobs were in his face. Simply having that in mind made things awkward enough to cut his focus on the conversation almost completely, and it was only realizing that fact which allowed him to look upward with a glar.

 

Alright. He'd probably sign his own death certificate for this he decided, but this was for the best. "Yeah, I'll r'member," he said with a snarl. "Just so long as you remember your place as his older sister..." He paused, before smirking. He was living here now, mind as well get his kicks before Kaiba killed him of. "...Seto-chan~." First name AND degrading honorific. Take that!

 

Kaiba's face went red with rage as she stepped back, fists clenched. Okay, he'd hit the 'scorned' part, Katsuya thought in the back of his mind, that much was true. Regret was sinking in, and the only thing keeping him afloat was the persisting thought that the jerk could stand being downsized a few thousand pegs. The woman stood there, silent for a moment before finding the words to say. "If you weren't already recovering from the injuries your suicidal leap off the stairs gave you, I'd have half a mind to throttle you right now, _mutt_." She clenched her teeth, whirling to leave the room. "As it is, savour the moment, for the next time you even think of referring to me by that name, you'll find out just what someone of my position can do."

 

The door slammed behind her, leaving Katsuya in the room alone. Briefly, he kept silent, before shaking his head. Ok. Heart was still beating, stomach still hurt like hell but that was expected... Shit. Kaiba had let him live after all! "Man...” he choked, regaining his senses. “That was creepy." She didn't have to say it twice- he was _not_ doing that again.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At the present time, minimum wage in Tokyo is about 958 Yen an hour- or a little more than 8.50 USD. 1200 Yen meanwhile, comes to 10.80 USD


	7. Chapter 5 | A Dish Best Served Cold

It had only been a few days since Katsuya had moved into the Kaiba mansion, though it was only semi-official for the time being. Tension had risen between the two teens in the house, though most of it was in the form of one glaring at the other while the other attempted to keep hold of a semblance of normalcy in the home. Waking up in room that his old bedroom could have fit in four times, regardless of the fact that he was 'paying rent' for it, was not helping to keep a sensation of 'normal'. Particularly since he was fairly sure that 'paying rent' was just another way to keep Mokuba's older sister from kicking him out; after all, if he had to pay rent, then he obviously still needed a job, regardless of the fact he was in school. Right?

 

Honestly, the number of excuses cycling around each other in a loop built just to keep him in place was confusing him. It was shortly after those few days, just when things had settled into a decent routine, that his (and possibly Yugi's) luck managed to kick it into gear once again. His injuries had finally healed again, and Kaiba was missing from school during that entire time. Something was going to pick up soon- that tended to be how things worked after all. Not just soon, he thought as Yugi chatted to him about the fluctuating rumors on the 'Ultimate Game' Kaiba was supposedly making, but 'Now' soon.

 

"So," Yugi was saying, pulling the teen from his thoughts. "What do you think the ultimate game is?"

 

He scratched his head, frowning. "Psh, knowing he- him? Probably somethin' teh inflate his giant head!" Katsuya snorted, hands in his pockets as they walked back from another go at the arcade. It'd become a sort of tradition, going there on his day off work. The building was close enough to the mansion that it wasn't a hassle going there, which was fortunate given the comparative distance between Yugi's home and his new one. "Anyways, don' worry about it Yug... If anythin', I think I should be the one worried, seein' how I work at the guy's house..." He shuddered, while Yugi gave a light laugh in response.

 

Very worried actually. Watch, it would flip completely, and he'd be the only one spared from a death ray or... Or something. Honestly, he had no clue, and thinking about it was just stressing him out. Before the boy said anything more in reply, a Rolls pulled up beside them, one of Kaiba's chauffeurs stepping out. The teens froze, blinking as the chauffeur gave Katsuya an odd look. "Interesting seeing you here, Jonouchi-kun," the middle aged man stated, his usual impassive tone sending a few chills down Katsuya's spine. "I had no idea you were well acquainted with Mutou Yugi."

 

Yugi blinked. "Er... Me?" Yea, because one sentence in and there wasn't already bullshit seeping from the guy.

 

"Nyhhhh... What's this about, you know full well I'm best buds with this guy!" As the chauffeur chuckled lightly, he scowled. Something was up, but what on earth was it? The man gestured towards the car, back doors opening, and suspicions aside Katsuya opted to remain silent.

 

"Please," the chauffeur told them, "Step in; I was sent by Seto Kaiba-sama to retrieve Mutou-san, but I

see no harm in transporting an employee as well." Of course he didn't. Because hey, not like he had to know the people working at the house as it was, being on security right? The teens shared a glance, Yugi merely blinking again.

 

"Kaiba-kun..." They stepped in the car, Katsuya leaning back in the seat as they took off. "Why would Kaiba call us though," the boy asked, apparently forgetting the fact that Katsuya was only there because... Well, he had been there. "I mean, I know he hasn't been at school lately but..."

 

The chauffeur focused on his driving, taking a turn before speaking. "That is understandable," he said with a seemingly detached tone. "Seto-sama has been very busy with important work as of late. And of course, he _is_ the CEO of Kaiba Corporation at this moment, so needless to say the workload can get rather intense..." Was that sarcasm in there? Katsuya frowned lightly, looking at the front a moment.

 

"I guess that makes sense but... He's balanced everything so far right?" At this point, Yugi tapped his shoulder, and he turned. "Eh, what is it Yug'?"

 

"Well," he said with a shrug. "I was just wondering what exactly it was that KaibaCorp does; I know it's a large company, and that games are involved, but no ones ever told me what it _does_..." That's right, he never told him... Granted, he'd kinda assumed Yugi knew but all the same, it felt a bit silly to assume what he'd been having grilled through his head for job training would be common knowledge.

 

A voice from the front interrupted them, and Katsuya jumped at the tone that Mokuba was using. It was oddly cynical, the voice. He didn't think any of it was directed at him if Yugi's current discomfort was any sign, but it was still fairly intense sitting there as the boy gained a look oddly similar to his older sister in a vicious mood"'Large' doesn't even begin to cover our company, Yugi!" He turned back to the front, the mirror moving to make him visible in it as they continued to drive. "KaibaCorp is the top entertainment company in the world; nothing beats us in games and leisure! And speaking of games..." He gave a dark smirk, Yugi visibly shrinking back with unease. "We had fun last time neh?" If by 'fun' he meant TRAUMATIZED. Just what was Mokuba _doing?_ "But no worries... You guys are my special guests, and the first to hear the good news!" Katsuya swallowed as the boy continued, an odd smile coming over Mokuba's face. "To tell you the truth, the big project that my older brother's been working on is finally complete- tomorrow is the Grand Opening!"

 

At this, Katsuya blinked. Grand Opening? He hadn't heard anything about that. "Grand Opening," he repeated with a slight frown. "For what?" Though after saying that, he had a feeling it was related to that 'ultimate game' rumor.

 

"Well," Mokuba said with a grin, "My brother's really thoughtful! He wanted his friends," (Katsuya held back a scoff at this, already unable to take any of that sentence seriously) "To have a great time~ So you're invited to the 'Night Before Party' Yugi, along with any friends you've brought along!" For a brief moment, Katsuya tensed. The look Mokuba had given him through the mirror wasn't the same as the one he'd given Yugi, but there was something there. Something dark, laced with a determination he rarely ever saw mixed with such an expression. And quite frankly, it was beginning to scare the shit out of him.

 

Yugi's voice interrupted his thoughts, the boy gulping before he nervously questioned Mokuba on the

events. "Kaiba-kun," he said, addressing Mokuba by his last name as well. "What sort of project was this..?"

 

That was a good question. A very good question, and Mokuba would probably not answer it. The boy shrugged, the car pulling up towards the house now. "It's a secret," he said, smirking. "A surprise, you understand what I mean right? I can't tell you!" As Yugi nodded in response, Katsuya's frown only persisted. Something did not seem right at all, but there was no time to voice his worries. The chauffeur announced that they had arrived, and it took all he could to keep his internal screams _internal_ rather than shouting at Yugi to question how he could be so trusting of the situation. Hell Mokuba was his employer and he felt as though he was walking into something bad!

 

"WOAH," Yugi shouted as they looked through the windows to the massive house. "IT'S HUGE!" They exited the car, Mokuba grinning as he gestured to the now open front door.

 

"Come on in," he said, a crowd of maids and butlers standing in the foyer to greet them. While Katsuya continued to look around semi-suspiciously, his friend looked around with wide-eyed amazement.

 

"Wow! It's like a royal palace here!" He turned, watching as the crowd of servants bowed down before them. Weird, the blond thought as Mokuba bragged to them about the crowd being his servants. He'd never seen this kind of welcome before- what was with the heavy attempts at intimidation? As quickly as he thought that, he scowled. Scratch that, he knew exactly why that was the case- he was wondering if he should have mentioned something to Yugi about how much Mokuba _hated_ him. It only explained so much however, and so the question in his mind remained- what the hell was going on?

 

At that moment the butler at the front who Katsuya recognized as the old butler from his first trip here, 'Hobson', stepped forwards to greet the pair. "You're Yugi-sama, correct," he said with his usual, even tone. The honorific visibly caught Yugi off guard, and Katsuya found himself looking over Hobson with a raised eyebrow. Since when was Hobson sent to greet people..? Wasn't he like, Kaiba's private butler or something? Hell, the only reason why he'd met the guy was because of his involvement in his first time there. "I have orders from Seto-sama to see to your every comfort this evening. You need only ask, and I will do my best to aid you." He rubbed his hands as he said this, while Mokuba turned to the servant with an odd look.

 

Rather, the same look he'd held most of the way there. "Neh," he said, tone oddly calm. "Hobson, where's my brother?" Katsuya's frown ceased to ease up as the butler told him that Seto had gone to lay down, having worked for days without rest. The expression Mokuba had... Maybe it wasn't the same as it usually was when being told something like this because Yugi was there, but it seemed as though he'd known the answer before hand. Possibly even... Planned it like that. Mentally, he beat himself over the head, teeth grinding as he shook it. Stop being so paranoid! Mokuba shrugged, turning to the others. "Bad news, Yugi-kun, Jonouchi-kun..." (Jonouchi-kun?) "It looks like my brother won't be partying with us tonight after all. So it looks like you really are MY guests tonight!" They weren't already? And since when did Seto Kaiba 'party'? The woman had emotions of solid iron.

 

As Yugi nodded, the statement somewhat calming him down, Hobson spoke again. "For now, shall we prepare dinner Mokuba-sama?"

 

"Oh yeah!" Katsuya instantly brightened, knowing full well what kind of meals the house tended to have. Probably one of the major pluses of staying here... Even if Mokuba rarely convinced his sister to let him in anything more than the staff kitchens where the ramen was kept. "That'd be great, I'm starvin'!" Maybe they could have that soup from last night? Though he had to wonder where all the leftovers went from the sibling's meals. Not to mention why the entire household had such a penchant for 'western' food in the first place. Either way, food time was a good time when it was Kaiba Family Food instead of an anxious kitchen raid!

 

His employer grinned, an honest smile that calmed him down a little more coming over the boy's face. "Huh? Why didn't you say so before then," he said as he led them to another room. "In that case, prepare to eat some of the best food in the world!"

 

The blond grinned, ignoring the fact that the room they were heading into wasn't anywhere near the kitchen. "An' when he says 'Best in the World'," he said to Yugi with a grin, "He really means it!"

 

Yugi beamed. "It really is like being in a royal palace!" Damn straight.

 

"Hey," Mokuba shouted to Hobson as they moved, "Prepare the appetizers!" Yes yes yes!

 

Hobson nodded. "Yes sir," he said with an odd look that once again disagreed with Katsuya's stomach, "I will prepare them at once..." Suddenly, he wasn't quite as hungry. As he stared at Mokuba with a regained expression of suspicion, he could have sworn he heard the boy say 'Looking forward to it...'. Yugi in the meantime remained oblivious, cheering loudly as they were brought to sit at a round table.

 

Well this was odd. The blond visibly drew back as he looked at the food on the red and black round table with a look of confusion and shock. "Time to eat," Mokuba said with a cheer, the others not saying anything as they stared. "Well," the boy said, a look of mirth on his face at the pair's reactions. "Dig in! Eat as much as you like," he said, before the expression became eerily malicious again. "Is what I'm supposed to say... But that would be boring! Instead, we're going to play a game!" WHAT. Oh come on, Katsuya thought with a groan.

 

"A game?" Yugi said with a blink, Katsuya frowning as he looked over the food in silence. A kiddy meal, spaghetti, pancakes... Burger, pizza, and a parfait. Besides the fact that this food was very very different from what was usually served here... Mokuba hated this kind of food! Well, aside from the parfait at least, but why would he play a game with these? Nonetheless he remained silent, watching as Mokuba nodded and continued to 'smile'.

 

He spun the table slightly, before clarifying. "See this table?" he began. "You usually find them in Chinese restaurants. The three of us will take turns spinning... and when it stops," he continued, "You have to eat the dish in front of you." Like a roulette wheel. Ahaha, and it was black and red too. Still. This food wasn't what he'd expect in a contest Mokuba had to participate in.

 

Katsuya frowned lightly, before attempting to put a bit of humor into the conversation with a forced smirk. "Oi Mokuba," he said with a slight grin. "You didn't poison anything did you? I just finished recovering from last time!" Not that this would actually happen of course- he was pretty sure Mokuba would sooner do that to himself than someone he'd hired. As Yugi appeared to briefly consider the possibility of that actually being the case though, Mokuba laughed loudly at the false accusation.

 

"Hahaha! My guests don't have to worry about anything like that," he told them. "In all actuality, there's a treasure hidden in one of the meals." Mokuba leaned back on his chair, smirking. "The one who finds it wins, and then we can eat our REAL supper!"

 

He grinned. Ok! So real supper would be the initiative for him in that case. "Well then, lets eat!" As Mokuba motioned for him to go first, he grabbed the table and flung it. "Here I go! HIYAH!" The table spun rapidly, colours blurring and blending before his eyes. Eventually however, individual shapes could be made out again before slowing down to stop with the kid's meal in front of him. Complete with Mount Fuji shaped rice pile, and a little Japan flag. Ick. "Awwww rats!" And he had to eat it on top of the motion sickness that spinning had given him too.

 

Mokuba smirked, idly playing with the syrup bottle at the side. "Jonouchi-kun, if you don't eat it all, you're out... It's the rules," he said with an odd smile on his face. "Besides," he added, tone oddly cold. "Maybe you'll get the prize..."

 

"Yeah yeah," he said dismissively, grabbing the plate and starting. Sooner this was over, the sooner he could figure out what was even going on, he told himself. A few bites in however and he blinked. "Huh," he said with slight surprise before continuing. "Not bad... ...Hn..." He frowned, looking around the table as his vision abruptly began to swim. Here he had honestly thought the curry rice was a good starter, but now... "What th' hell..." Colours began to blend again, but instead of motion it was because of how foggy they steadily became. His eyelids grew heavier and heavier, and the silverware fell from his hands with a clatter.

 

Yugi jumped, grabbing his friend as the blond began to tilt off the chair. "J-Jonouchi-kun! Jonouchi-kun, what's wrong!" Part of him wanted to say nothing. The other, noticing that Yugi's hair looked damn _weird_ when the colours blurred to the point of mud, wanted to say everything. Laughter came from the side of the table as Katsuya slumped against his seat from the floor, the last words he heard being something along the lines of 'grand prize' before it all went black.

 

* * *

 

As Katsuya slipped into a blissful state of unconsciousness Mokuba laughed almost maniacally, Yugi looking at him in shock. "What luck," he said, knowing full well that luck had nothing to do with the dose of desflurane he'd spiked Katsuya with. "Jonouchi-kun won the grand prize!" He grinned madly, going on with the comfort that the anaesthesia would keep Katsuya unconscious while the game continued. After all; Yugi and Katsuya were best friends! And if Katsuya saw what he was going to do to Yugi...

 

He mentally shook it off, instead drinking in the complete shock on his opponent's face. "W-What... What did you..." Yugi stood frozen, Mokuba merely laughing coldly from his seat.

 

"I poisoned that meal," he said, continuing with his slightly white lie. "Along with one other on this table! This game is 'Russian Roulette Dinner'," the boy continued with a grin. "And that poison will take its full effect in just 30 minutes!" A lie of course, he thought as he looked down at Katsuya's sleeping form. In reality 30 minutes would be when the teen woke up if he'd done the math right. He'd explain everything then, though. Everything, and then it would all be fine! And Yugi...

 

Yugi stood stiff at the end of the table, shifting with the usual tenseness that Mokuba recognized from before he saw the 'Other Yugi' occurring. "You want to help Jonouchi-kun, right?" he said with a smirk. Any second now... Any second and 'he' would appear. "Beat me, and I'll give you the antidote!" There was no way he'd lose this time, he told himself as the boy across from him gritted his teeth. No way, this time he would beat the other Yugi, and he'd make his sister proud, and everything would be fixed and-

 

"MOKUBA," Yugi suddenly roared, the change clearly having taken place. "Doing this to not only my friend but to someone who viewed you as a friend as well... I'll never forgive you for this!" Of course he wouldn't! That wouldn't matter though! Because in the end...

 

He merely smirked, pointing at the wheel as he continued fingering his syrup bottle switch. "Yeah yeah," he said with a grin. "But as we talk, Jonouchi-kun is coming closer and closer to the light at the end of the tunnel..." The boy chuckled darkly, watching as Yugi continued to seethe. "There's still five dishes left, Yugi-kun... And it's your turn!" Should he play this out? Or just get it over with? The teen appeared to stare blankly at him in his rage a moment, before spinning the wheel. Mokuba opted not to use the 'switch' this time; it'd be better to simply let Yugi bring his own demise for now he decided, watching as it landed on the spaghetti. "Go on," he said with a grin. "Eat!"

 

Yugi glared, before eating the small plate in silence and finishing it off easily. Mokuba's grin grew, the boy laughing.

 

"Safe," he called, leaning forwards in his seat. "That one wasn't poisoned!" As the teen continued to glare at him, he decided to taunt Yugi further, grinning. "Was it good Yugi," he said with a sneer, continuing. "It's like a life or death feast, isn't it? If you don't die after eating the food, be happy... Because the next one could be your last!" With luck, the next one would, too! Yugi merely glared, growling as the boy fingered the syrup bottle and spun the wheel. "My turn next," he said with a grin. Watching the table spin, Mokuba lightly tapped the syrup bottle to stop the wheel, watching as it landed on the chocolate parfait. No way he was eating anything else. Besides, it was always fun to eat dessert before a meal! "YEAH!" His opponent watched with suspicion as the boy took the ice cream, grinning. "My favourite!" He continued to grin, before digging in eagerly.

 

The boy froze however, as the teen pointed to his bottle with a frown. "Mokuba," he said, eyes narrowed. "What's in that bottle?" Choking slightly on the last bits of his parfait, he turned to look at the teen.

 

"It's a syrup bottle of course! For the pancakes!" Shit! No way he'd guessed what it was there for already!

 

The teen raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms. "It's empty..." Of- Of course it was! But ahhhhhh what did he do now? He put up a poker-face smirk, inwardly panicking. What to say, what to say... Darn it! He laughed, before coming up with a quick cover story. "That's because it's been used already! Didn't you notice the pancakes were already covered?" Mokuba watched as Yugi looked at the table, grunting slightly as he noted the pancakes were indeed covered with thick syrup. There. That fixed it. "When you eat the poisoned dish," he continued with a grin, "This bottle will fill; you know what they say right? The misfortune of others is like sweet syrup! Ahahaha..." Maybe adding that bit was pushing it- but this was bad, he thought as Yugi continued to watch him skeptically. Really bad, he needed to finish this soon..! Katsuya would understand when he woke up right? Yugi had to go, he just had to..! Why, with Yugi gone, Seto would finally...

 

Finally...

 

"Now, your turn Yugi!" That's right, he told himself. He'd end it now, making Yugi eat the poisoned burger. After all, so long as the switch was here...

 

"Mokuba," the teen suddenly said, pulling him from his thoughts. "This next move will end the game... At the same time, we'll both eat what's in front of us, understand?" The boy nodded. That wouldn't be a problem... He could easily finish this before Katsuya woke up! Besidse, he had planned to sabotage Yugi's meal already! There were only five minutes left, but he could do it. Though he didn't want to think of what would happen if they couldn't get rid of the body fast enough..

 

"Alright then," he said with a smirk. "That sounds good..."

 

Yugi apparently realized how short his time was however, spinning the table with a nod. "Let's go then!" As the wheel spun, Mokuba froze- a loud cracking noise was heard, and he looked down as something 'gold' flew past to smash through the switch. No... He looked up, watching as Yugi smirked, his puzzle no longer around his neck. No, no, no, this wasn't happening! The colours blurred, but a faint 'gold' line could be seen around the wheel, before the puzzle dragged it to a slower pace.

 

No... No!

 

The wheel stopped, no longer controlled by anything other than fate as the hamburger dish stopped in front of him.

 

Impossible... This was impossible..! Not again, he couldn't, not again..! "I got... I got..!"

 

He stared in shock at the pyramid shaped gold puzzle attached to the table, looking across to Yugi in shock. "What's the matter," he said with a smirk, crossing his arms. "I've already finished my meal- I suppose it wasn't poisoned... Now then," he continued, expression becoming incredibly dark as Mokuba shrank back in fear. No... No not again... So dark so dark so dark, he wasn't there again, he wasn't he wasn't... Dark... Nothing but darkness, so cold... So cold..! " _Why haven't you cleaned your plate?_ "

 

He swallowed. The poison, the fatal poison that would send a person writhing in pain for an hour before killing them off. The poison at least was a simple one- it had an antidote, and he'd kept one ready in case he came in contact. It would be horrible until the antidote kicked in.

 

But if the alternative was facing Yugi...

 

Not again... Not again!

 

"Alright... Alright!" he said shouted, reaching for the hamburger in fear. He would take anything over that. Anything but that week of silence and darkness he'd had before. His hands shook, and Mokuba gulped. "But first," he said, pointing at Yugi with a crazed and broken grin. "Don't think you've won... Death-T begins tomorrow... And when Katsuya wakes up, I'll make sure he knows just who you really are!" And nothing else! The truth...

 

The truth would be revealed, and then... And then...

 

Yugi merely glared as the boy grabbed the burger, before taking a solid, determined bite from it and freezing in pain. A few maids who had been standing at the side of the room ran in as he fell to the floor, screaming. Hurried whispers were passed between the two before Mokuba was dragged out- and the vial of 'antidote' was left harmlessly on the table.

 

As the teen picked it up and replaced the puzzle around his neck, he frowned. Pulling the seal on the bottle told him exactly what was inside. "Water..." It was nothing but water, 'Yugi' realized with a frown. And more than that, after spending the day using 'Jonouchi-kun'...had he called Jonouchi 'Katsuya' just now..?

 

"Hnnng..." Yugi jumped as Katsuya began moving, slowly getting up with his back turned on the teen. "God my head feels like I shoved it in a blender 'r somethin..." What was Kaiba planning, 'Yugi' thought to himself with a frown, before turning to face Katsuya. Half an hour had passed, and the blond was clearly not dead- nor was he showing the symptoms Mokuba had in the first place. And as for Mokuba... Why had Mokuba lied about the poisoning? He said 'in half an hour, he'll be dead', and instead Katsuya was waking up and moaning about a headache. He said, 'this is the antidote', and instead the maids ignored it completely to pull the boy away. And this 'Death-T'... He continued to frown, placing the antidote back on the table and narrowing his eyes. Whatever. For now... The energy in the room seemed to shift, and a few seconds later the teen was looking around in confusion.

 

"Jonouchi-kun," came the 'real' Yugi's worried cry, and he tackled the blond just as he stood up. "Jonouchi-kun! You're alright!"

 

"Ack... Sheesh, gimme a sec, I'm still seein' spots..." Katsuya shook his head, looking at the almost empty table surrounded by broken glass. "What the hell happened anyways..?" Half the food was gone, Mokuba was gone, and then there was all of this.

 

Yugi shook his head, eyes wide with worry. "I don't know... Mokuba said he'd poisoned you and..." Yugi shook, grabbing his head in a panic. What happened? He'd blacked out again, but then _what happened_? "I... I just don't know what happened after that!"

 

The blond looked down at him, frowning lightly. Poisoned... He'd just been joking, why would Mokuba... Poison him?

 

At that moment, Hobson came in, his odd expression on his face again. "I've come to escort you to another wing of the building," he said stiffly, eyes fixed almost entirely on Yugi. "Due to the... Events... Of this evening," he said with a well hidden sneer, "The 'party' has been cut short." His frown deepened. Events, what events? Nothing had happened! "Also, Jonouchi-kun," the man said, turning to the boy with a considerably lighter gaze. "Mokuba-sama would like to speak to you later on..."

 

Yeah, so would he actually- he had a hell of a lot to ask, after all. Katsuya nodded. "Yeah, alrigh'... Jus' let me talk t' Yugi for a moment." Hobson nodded stiffly, muttering a '5 minutes only' as he left while the teen turned to Yugi with a blank stare. "So... You don' have a clue what happened either huh..." Well didn't that just suck. All he knew was that he'd been poisoned somehow and... Looking at the clock he was missing a good half-hour of his life. Wonderful.

 

For a moment, a guilty look flashed over Yugi's face, but he shook his head. "Not a clue... But, Jonouchi-kun..." He looked up with a pale expression, gulping audibly. "Jonouchi-kun, are you sure it's alright to stay, I mean..."

 

Katsuya nodded, though his expression was just as unsure as his friend's statement. "Yea... Heck, he didn' so much as poison me as knock me out right? Which means he obviously wanted me alive but unconscious for some reason..." For _some_ reason. He frowned, watching as Hobson came back. "I'll see yah in th' mornin', alrigh?"

 

The boy blinked, before nodding. "H-Hn!" At that, he let Hobson lead him away to whatever wing he was going to be stuck in.

 

Alright... Now then. Katsuya turned as one of the maids motioned for him to follow, a scowl set on his face.

 

As Seto would say- it was time to talk 'business'.

 


	8. Chapter 6 | Glance Behind the Mask

When he reached the room that he was in, Mokuba was lying on his bed and drinking slowly from a glass of water. The boy had looked at him with shadowed eyes, before turning his gaze to a chair beside him. The message to sit down was carried along with but a glance and so he took it, pulling a chair over as the maid left the room to leave them alone. Katsuya decided to get right to the point, regardless of how pale the boy looked. It'd probably be easier that way.

 

"Why'd you poison me?" he said, his voice quieter than usual but still rather harsh. The boy before him put the cup down, taking a few quick and audible breaths as he attempted to calm himself. Though he'd gotten the antidote quickly, he was still in pain...

 

But it was nothing compared to what could happen if he didn't warn Katsuya of what was going to happen the next day. He knew this was against what his sister had planned for the evening; even though Yugi would be led to a separate wing of the mansion to stay the night as requested, he was determined to keep Katsuya from facing the same fate. He couldn't die... He wouldn't let...

 

Slowly, he allowed himself to speak. "The party... It was meant to weaken Yugi before tomorrow's events..."

 

"What..?" Katsuya glared, fists clenching. 'Weaken' his ass, if anything was going to happen it would have killed him! "Whadya mean, 'weaken'? Why'd you poison me!"

 

Mokuba simply shook, hands finding the edge of his blanket to clutch tightly. Ever since the end of the 'meal', all he'd been seeing was the endless dark, dark, dark, only hearing those last words...

 

'PENALTY GAME!'

 

"Nee-sama...” The boy swallowed. “Nee-sama planned a tower of games, five games to test Yugi and his friends," he said, voice cracking quietly under the emotion. "They... Seto-neesama is going to kill them! She has a device set up there, a 'penalty' game'...She..." He decided to leave out the fact that it was on his floor as well, shaking his head. "Nee-sama is... She wanted you to be there... With Yugi. But the first three levels were made to kill anyone with him! And I... I..." Katsuya froze as Mokuba said this, the boy before him shaking horribly while he looked to him with a wide and panicked gaze.

 

"Kill," he finally choked out, pulling back with almost as wide eyes. "She's gonna... _Kill_ Yugi... Over a loss?" That was extreme even for her! Hell... To actually kill someone over a game? Security was one thing, same with that big secret that he was still alive after discovering in the first place- but she'd kill over a _game?_

 

"I... I don't want you to die!" Katsuya jumped at the outburst, watching as tears began streaming down Mokuba's face. "You're nice," the boy forced out, shaking his head as he wept. "And... And you don't care about money, or about what Nee-sama says! I don't want you to die... Even... Even if it means my big sister will never love me again! Even if... Even..."

 

No... The blond stared, rendered silent by the words. No way... No way, that couldn't be... No way he meant THAT FUCKING MUCH! The answers to Mokuba's actions since the day they'd met began to fit into place and Katsuya grit his teeth, shaking his head with what could almost be called disgust. He didn't have the right to even replace someone's sibling like that, no matter how far from the word Kaiba was. He had no right, and with things as they were it would never work so easily as the dreams of the broken child before him in the first place. He steeled his resolve, scowl thickening as he focused on the reason he was here in the first place. "An' what about Yugi?" he asked bitterly, daring the boy to look him in the eye. "What, does he deserve death? You want him t' die instead! Is it really worth tha' much, huh, Mokuba?"

 

Mokuba shook his head, breathing haggardly as he stared at the blond. He didn't know, he didn't _understand_... "N... Nnn... It... Dark..." Dark? "It was... You..." The boy continued to shake, clutching his blanket and curling into a ball. "You don't know what it was like... How it felt..." He sniffed, looking to the teen for a comfort he hadn't been able to get from his sister, his flesh and blood relative for far too long. For the comfort he didn't want to see vanish, that he didn't want to ever lose again like it already had and- "He did that... _He_ did that, not... Not _me_ ," he tried to rationalize, "That was _him_... Not..." Just make it go away, he mentally pleaded. Pull him close like before, make it go away...

 

Instead the blond stood up, scowl refusing to fade. "I oughta quit," he said, voice tense. "But th' fact is, losin' my job means losin' my only home thanks t' what you pulled hiring me. Not only tha', but you'd probably find a way t' bounce my resignation back anyway." His apartment wasn't even his and his father's any more, he'd have no way to pay for anything...and he could just see Mokuba giving justification to whatever it would take to keep him _here_. His nails dug into his palms, and he moved to leave the room. "Thanks but no thanks for the warnin' Mokuba," the teen muttered coldly. "I'll see yah tomorrow."

 

For a moment, he heard nothing but a soft 'no'. That was all the boy was saying as he left, just 'no'. It soon increased in volume and in speed, almost a mantra as he left, constant and frantic in his ears. "No... no... no No NO NO! No! Don't go," he screamed, voice echoing through the halls. "I don't want you to die! DON'T GO!" Katsuya ignored it, shutting the door behind him as he found the nearest maid. "K... JONOUCHI! DON'T GO!"

 

"Where'd y' take Yugi," he said coldly, ignoring the screams inside. The woman stood there, blinking for a moment before pointing to the left in shocked silence. "Thanks."

 

As he took off at a brisk walk, he could still hear Mokuba's screams. "DON'T GO! JONOUCHI! DON'T GO, SHE'LL KILL YOU!"

 

Sorry kid, he told himself as he moved off to the building they'd stuck Yugi in. But he didn't abandon his friends...

 

No matter what the cost was.

 

* * *

 

' _How did I lose,_ ' she'd said that night. ' _HOW COULD I LOSE AT DUEL MONSTERS!_ ' And all she saw in response was a cold stare as what she had thought to be the shortest, most harmless kid in class pointed at her and shouted...

 

' _ **PENALTY GAME! THE ILLUSION OF DEATH!**_ '

 

No...

 

Monsters formed from the shadows of the cards, ripping her apart with their claws and teeth, tearing the flesh of her bones as she screeched in pain.

 

No.. No.. NO...

 

She didn't care that she wasn't using her 'voice' for this... She didn't care if anyone was listening, she was good as dead anyways..! Trying to hold back the screams would be useless, useless, _useless_ -!

 

Losers die, she heard Gozaburo call out, cackling through the air. Losers DIE, she heard through the roars of the beasts that clamped their teeth on her bones, drank her blood as it poured freely from her form, ripped skin and muscle from her skeleton even as her body refused to simply die.

 

No... NO NO NO NO! Stop! STOP! _STO-_

 

"Hah!" Seto opened her eyes, breathing heavily as she looked around the room. "Hah... hah... hah..." She swallowed, attempting to regain her breath. That nightmare... That nightmare again...

 

She stepped out of her bed, looking out the window as Hobson came in to help prepare for the day. The butler bowed low, before greeting her politely. Just... Just a dream, she reminded herself again. Just that stupid, endless dream...

 

"Good morning, Seto-sama," Hobson began as the woman moved to check a few things prepared the night before in the room. "As you requested, Yugi stayed here in the mansion overnight. Also," he stated with a slightly forced smile. "It would appear that regardless of interference, his friend will indeed be present at the Opening Ceremonies."

 

Seto nodded. Well, at least something had gone right. Though knowing her brother, he'd tried something stupid again. "Good," she said as she moved to the wardrobe in the room to grab her clothes. "I invited them here as planned, but it seems I fell asleep," she muttered to herself, before sighing. Really... How foolish. Hobson watched as she moved to the attached washroom to change, still talking. "All my life," she said with a slightly less cold tone, "I've had restless nights when I couldn't wait for the morning..." The butler listened as she continued, allowing her personal rambling to carry on without interruption. "Isn't it ironic, that I had that nightmare..?"

 

There was no answer of course, and as she walked out fully dressed the woman narrowed her eyes. No more, she thought to herself as she left the room. No more would she have that nightmare. For today, she would have her revenge. And wouldn't it be absolutely wonderful, she thought to herself with a wicked smirk, when Yugi was suffering from the same nightmares in a hospital bed while everyone he knew was gone? Until then...

 

She walked down the hall, still smirking. Well, she could handle the acting she'd have to do for now.

 

* * *

 

"Jonouchi-kun?" Katsuya jumped as he turned in his seat at the table to face Yugi. He'd been spacing out for the last number of minutes, vanishing into paranoid thought. "Jonouchi-kun," the boy repeated worriedly. "Are you sure you're alright?"

 

He nodded, attempting to laugh the situation off somewhat. "H-Hah... Of course! All I needed was a good night's sleep!" At the moment, he was only as pale as he was because Yugi kept insisting that while Kaiba _was_ a jerk, last night clearly proved that whatever was in store wasn't fatal- if Jonouchi had been dosed with nothing but sedative and woken up after all, then clearly Kaiba wasn't really trying to kill them. For the moment he kind of wished Mokuba had actually dosed him with the poison. At least then Yugi would have a solid idea that yes, Seto was really going to kill them. "...I just don' like this," he admitted, grimacing. "S- He's got me completely reliant, if I say anythin' I end up broke on the streets while you end up caught some other way, but if I don't..." He could at least be there for Yugi if he played along for now, but the limited options left him growling. "I'm telling yah Yug', Mokuba wasn' joking when he said the guy's trying t' kill you!"

 

Yugi frowned, shaking his head. "I _can't_ believe it! You said yourself that it's a tower he's built, right? He can't just kill people in a tower of games, that's illegal, and too public to ignore!" Unless you're a billionaire, Katsuya added mentally, frowning as Yugi went on. Because if you had the cash after all, what _couldn't_ you hide? "Hnnn...” Yugi sighed, turning away from his friend. “Grandpa must be really worried now... I didn't tell him I'd be out all night..."

 

He rolled his eyes. "Somethin' tells me tha's the least of our worries seein' what kind a ceremony we've been invited to..."

 

For all they knew, Gramps was in this too. Stuck in some room, for a captive to use against them in case they butted out. "It does make me nervous," the boy admitted, ignoring Katsuya's comment on that being an understatement. "I think I've been watched this whole time, even while I slept... It's like we're prisoners here, they've even locked us in..."

 

Even while he- For a moment he wondered what kinds of things Seto was interested in, if she was watching Yugi all night, but the severity of the situation cut the wind from his sails too quickly to even joke. More than anything it was probably just Kaiba being overly obsessive, he thought with a grimace. Hell, he'd been trying to tell Yugi that this was Kaiba's plan for the last hour! Before the blond could repeat anything on the matter however, a voice came from behind them.

 

"Sorry to keep you waiting," Hobson said as he appeared. "Seto-sama has awoken. He will see you now." And wasn't that just lovely? Bring her over, he hissed internally, so he could kick her in the face like the murderous bitch deserved. As the butler announced her arrival, Kaiba's voice came from up the stairs in the room. Katsuya instantly greeted the false smile on the woman's face with a glare, biting back a shout.

 

"Good morning, Jonouchi-kun, Yugi-kun," she said, the smile and pleasantries making Katsuya sick to his stomach. He had since adapted to how her voice was a disguise of course- But that smile... He'd never get used to just how _wrong_ a smile looked on her face, more so when he knew there was no good reason to pretend. "I've been looking forward to seeing you again.” What a load of bullshit he thought, gripping the chair-back. Bullshit, bullshit, bullshit!

 

He growled, Yugi merely looking up in surprise as he continued to scowl in response to the greeting. "Yeah I bet," Katsuya muttered under his breath, continuing to growl as he watched the woman com toward the table.

 

"What's wrong?" she asked, smirking. "Lighten up, celebrate!"

 

NO. And stop talking like that!

 

Katsuya stood up, slamming his hand on the table as he turned to face the woman. "Kaiba... We didn't want to come to 'celebrate' anything! We just finished getting out of a game where your brother tried to kill us, don't think we're going to say 'Good Morning' and be done with it!"

 

The teen merely smirked, shrugging. "Mokuba... Oh yes, him. Such a cheeky kid, though you should watch what you say about your boss..." Cheeky... Yes, that was the word. The smirk grew into an odd, insulting grin, eyes narrowing in a way that reminded him of a fox. "And since when were you so upset over a children's game?"

 

"Since that 'children's game' almost KILLED US," he bit out, before Yugi interrupted.

 

"Neh, Kaiba-kun," he said as he turned to look up at the teen with slight unease. "Where are we going today anyways?"

 

There was a silence as the woman smirked, before giving the boy another of her false smiles. Inwardly, he wondered how much more he could take before he puked. Or at least threw the chair he was sitting on. After that question had been asked however, everything seemed to hasten ten-fold. ' _A dream like place_ ', she said, rushing them out the door. ' _I can't wait to show you,'_ she continued, Katsuya replacing the word 'dream' with 'nightmare' whenever she spoke the word. ' _Hurry_ ' she insisted, and as they left to enter the car Katsuya could barely make out Mokuba's worried and panicked face from the side of the hall. ' _Hurry..!_ '

 

Damn it.

 

Damn it, damn it... He growled as Kaiba continued speaking, listening only partially as he attempted to figure out how to convince Yugi to just not go along with the 'event'. They were already in the car though, so what the hell was he supposed to say? Pull over, I don't feel like I'm in the mood to die?

 

It occurred to him vaguely that Kaiba was speaking now. "As you know," she was saying, "I'm the current CEO of KaibaCorp, having taken over shortly before my 'Father' Gozaburo died almost a year ago..." That made sense, he thought to himself idly. After all, that was about when Kaiba actually showed up at the school. Among that thought he wondered what the point of the story was. Why? Why talk to them, or even halfway pretend to care about sharing her background with them? "Since that time," she was saying with a still false smile, "I've been working on a 'dream project' or sorts. I'm sure you'll love it... Look," the woman said as she gestured to the window. "You can see it from here- a _dream_ tower, from which you can see all of the Domino District!" Dream, Katsuya noted, still brought the feelings that came with the word 'nightmare'.

 

They approached the tower, both himself and Yugi staring in shock regardless of the former's thoughts on the matter. "Woaaaaaah," the shorter was saying, hands pressed against the car window as he looked at the enormous building. "Kaiba-kun built all of that?"

 

Well. Regardless of all that was likely inside, that was impressive he guessed. They stepped out of the car, Katsuya snorting as he saw what it was called. "Kaiba-Land... Figures he'd do that..." Ignoring the conversations of it being an indoor amusement park, they watched as a horde of small children gathered around the building, cheering as Kaiba approached with an oddly genuine smile.

 

"Welcome," she said, waving to the kids before moving on to the door. "To the KaibaLand Opening Ceremonies!" All around cheers were given, some calling her a hero, others calling her a 'gaming genius'. And all along the pair had to simply stare, Katsuya briefly wondering how such an ass could be so popular with kids.

 

Acting, he supposed as Kaiba turned to face Yugi. Acting was the answer. "Yugi-kun," she said with that same sugary sick smile. "Kaiba Land doesn't really open for another three days, but for today a number of people have been invited to come and play for free." Inwardly, Katsuya wondered why Mokuba had said 'and his friends' the day before then. He wondered... Where were the other _friends_ if that was the case? "I want you two to have fun as well, understand?"

 

He frowned as Kaiba said this, arms crossed in his skepticism as Yugi scratched his cheek in confusion. As Kaiba announced the building open to the public, loudly stating to Yugi that her dream was to give kids everywhere a 'place like this', Katsuya sighed. In the end, nothing had really happened so far. And Yugi's earlier point on publicity made sense he supposed. He turned to Yugi with an honest grin, his friend mirroring the expression.

 

"Heh...You heard 'm," he said with a shout. "Come on, let's go!" Paranoid thoughts were for work- they were for wondering when and why he'd have to use 'work training' with weapons, and for inspecting curious specks and loops on a camera screen. At this rate, all he was doing was ruining Yugi's day!

 

Maybe...

 

Just maybe, Mokuba had been wrong about Kaiba, just for today. Creepy as the smile was, it had to be for show right? Couldn't they accept that the acting wasn't hiding something so bitter? ...Maybe ignore the fact that they'd been invited for unknown reasons, by someone who seemed to hate them? Yugi nodded, just as eager as his friend. "Yeah! Let's go!"

 

Just as they were about to take off and actually relax a little, a rather haggard man shouted after them. Evidently, Seto's security was just as bad at Kaiba-Land as it had been at her house. "HEY , SETO!" They turned, the man angrily pointing at the woman with a snarl. "Monster..." He shook his head, eyes bloodshot as he pointed forwards. "You're a monster, you know that? You killed the company president!" he shouted, and both boys frowned as Kaiba turned to the man with a neutral gaze. "You took over KaibaCorp and forced your own father out of business! So he killed himself! MONSTER!"

 

As the man shouted this, Seto pulled one of the guards to the side, others already rushing to flank the vagabond. "Get him out of here," she muttered, the guard pulling another one over before dragging the screaming man off the property. People around them seemed to otherwise ignore the scene, though Yugi and Katsuya were both eyeing Kaiba oddly. "Psh," she said with a cold stare, clearly aware of their concern. "Unemployed trash... It's amazing what my father had hired in life..." She crossed her arms, apparently addressing the others now. "He appears to be spreading false rumors in his anger... My father's death was sad, but I had nothing to do with it... If anything," the woman added with a cold smile, "I'd like to think he died in peace, knowing I was his heir..."

 

Briefly, Katsuya wondered if Yugi had seen what he had. The complete change in expression, the reversion back to what he himself knew as 'the real Kaiba'. Something that was just creepy enough to pull the earlier thoughts of paranoia back to the front of his brain. ' _This might be a bad idea_ ', his head kept shouting. ' _A bad, bad, idea!_ ' He frowned as Seto uncrossed her arms, before walking ahead of them.

 

"Come on, Yugi-kun," she said with the sickeningly false smile back in place. "I'll show you around the Park, a grand tour if you will..." The sensation of dread persisted- but as they were shown ride after ride, Katsuya felt the feeling drop like a stone, replaced again by enjoyment. From standard arcade games to intense 3D illusions on a roller-coaster, all Seto was doing was proving that she _wasn't_ going to kill them. The only nagging point in his mind was that Kaiba seemed rather bored of it all; she simply stayed back, impassively watching them as they participated on the rides while sitting out entirely. This of course, was Yugi's defense on the matter when he brought the point up, thereby making it even harder to convince him that they were possibly about to be killed. Aside from that lingering dread, things were going rather well to say the least. The blond hid his slow to die suspicions, watching as Yugi clearly enjoyed himself before caving.

 

Maybe Mokuba was being paranoid, he repeated to himself for the second time that day. Hell, even Kaiba had to have a 'nice' moment for once right? After all... Well, if she didn't, she'd be completely screwed over in the afterlife and beyond it, he finally huffed to himself! She had to believe in at least that right?

 

...Or maybe not. She did act like she was a god half the time, as far as he could tell.

 

"There's still more," Kaiba said later on, leading them over the park on a long transparent bridge of sorts. "It's time to see today's 'special' attraction, something I've prepared just for you, Yugi-kun!"

 

Katsuya froze, his suspicions coming back to him all at once while conflicting with emotions he'd been feeling earlier. Hadn't he been paranoid enough, he thought as Yugi commented on that being far too much for someone like him. Hadn't he already essentially ruined the day for himself by keeping a look out for some sort of sniper the entire time?

 

They approached a pair of double doors, Kaiba stepping to the side with an out of place grin. "It's on the other side of this door," she said as Yugi and Katsuya both walked forwards. "Let's go, you have a front row seat..!" And after all, with the front row seats that couldn't possibly mean anything bad right?

 

He was regretting the park food he'd eaten already.

 

They entered the room, a large crowd meeting their ears and eyes as the looked towards what seemed to be a glass box in the middle. It was almost coliseum-like, the way the crowd circled the box and its arena. Idly, he wondered if the proceedings would be any similar. For now he opted to simply try and make out who or what was inside. A pair of chairs, a table, and seated upon one of them...

 

"Grandpa!" Yugi ran forwards, his grandfather now pounding against the glass with a clear expression of worry on his face. "Grandpa!" he shouted, before being moved aside by one of the guards. "Hey! What are you doing!" Katsuya swallowed as he moved to stand by Yugi, watching Seto move towards the box with a cold smirk. The crowd cheered wildly as she walked, briefcase of cards in hand as the other two frowned.

 

"What the hell is he planning?" the blond shouted partially to himself, listening as Kaiba addressed the crowd. Mokuba's haunting words echoed in his ears, and Katsuya could feel the blood drain from his face. ' _She's going to kill you_ ,' he was screaming in his mind. ' _She'll KILL YOU!_ ' He cursed his luck, and his gut all at once. Why the hell were his earlier suspicions true? Why did fate have to turn this way for them? He clenched his fists, bodyguards pushing them further back with an all too hidden gun as Yugi's grandfather gave up on trying to warn them of the inevitable.

 

The crowd roared, and Kaiba merely smirked up at them, turning to gesture at the box in the center of the arena. "I've been challenged," she stated clearly and loudly with her well disguised voice, "By an elderly gentleman who claims to be an undefeated master of Duel Monsters!" She said the last few words with a harsh, sarcastic tone, a majority of the crowd already laughing at that comment. After all- who would dare challenge 'Kaiba-sama'? Katsuya swallowed, while Yugi merely grew as pale as his friend already was.

 

"Duel monsters... Grandpa is facing Kaiba-kun in.. Duel Monsters?" Yeah, something told him the challenge wasn't issued by Sugoroku. The blond shook on the spot as the crowd began to poke fun at the old man, Kaiba stepping into the box to begin the match. They couldn't hear anything that happened. But they could see, and what they could see was not good. As Kaiba placed a card down, Sugoroku jumped- clearly terrified as the image of the same monster appeared from the walls. Yugi as well stood, shocked as his grandfather just about had a heart attack from the sight. While the old man recovered himself quickly, Seto's cold smile at the sight showed that she was all too happy about the event. The battle moved on, the winner seemingly undetermined for a majority of the match. If there had been an ounce of sincerity in the challenge, perhaps it could even have been enjoyable.

 

And of course if anything could exist to ruin it, Kaiba could find it. Watching with wide eyes, Katsuya stiffened as the woman summoned three of the same dragons he'd heard Yugi and his Grandfather call the most powerful in existence. ' _Only four of its kind_ ', he was told.

 

Sugoroku didn't stand a chance.

 

Watching as Kaiba all too cheerily tore the old man's own edition in two, Katsuya very quickly realized why Mokuba had been so set on not wanting him to come. Most of the match had been spoken not shouted. Speakers were located around the crowd, but for some reason in their little 'niche' of the arena, he and Yugi had been unable to hear a damn thing. But the next part...

 

Even from outside the seemingly sound proof box, they could hear the screams.

 

The could hear Kaiba's laugh as she called out with a wide and manic grin, "PENALTY GAME!" The two of them watched the illusionary monsters surround Yugi's grandfather, Kaiba walking out to pass the two teens. Clouds of 'smoke' filled the room, blocking the view of the old man from the crowd, and as Kaiba came close one could make out an all too smug look on her face.

 

They didn't have to see to understand what was happening. The screams left nothing to the imagination. "You asshole..." Katsuya was blocked by Yugi, who pushed forwards to look at the teen with wide and unforgiving eyes. "You-"

 

Kaiba chuckled as the boy stood there, Yugi apparently unable to speak for a moment. "Hnhnhn.. We've tested this simulation on many people," the woman said coldly, chuckling as she turned to the glass box. Her smile, no doubt real this time, was menacing and unforgiving as she continued. "A normal human will go insane after a mere ten minutes. If it isn't stopped soon, he'll be crippled for life..." At those words her eyes flashed back to her self-claimed rival, narrowing dangerously with mirth.

 

"Kaiba!" Yugi shook, fists clenched as he listened to his grandfather's screams. "Kaiba! Let my Grandpa out! Right now!" His face grew red in panic, and the crowd seemed to laugh even at this, much to Katsuya's disgust.

 

The woman merely chuckled at Yugi's frightened expression, her rival trembling as she spoke. "If you want me to stop this simulator," she said quietly, "You'll have to agree to participate in Kaiba Land's secret attraction, 'DEATH-T'; the Death Theme-park I've constructed as my revenge for that duel we had weeks ago..!"

 

As she finished, her voice seemed to raise to an almost crazed tone, the woman clearly certain that she would succeed this time around. As though nothing would stop her- Nothing!

 

Death T. Katsuya froze, knuckles cracking as he stood there. 'Death Theme'. Such an obvious name, but the crowd simply ate it up. Nothing. There was nothing he could do here, and if he'd just pushed Yugi to not go it could have been solved...

 

Or could it? Knowing Kaiba she'd have just called and told them that Yugi's grandfather was officially insane and it was their fault. Or perhaps simply left them to reach his home and find him missing, a letter of challenge their only clue to where he'd gone. The screams picked up, Yugi's eyes wide as he nodded furiously. "What ever it takes," he shouted. "Just turn it off!"

 

And Kaiba smirked. "A wise decision." She turned to the nearest bodyguard, giving him a curt nod. "Stop the simulation, now!"

 

"Yes sir!"

 

The guard walked off after giving a salute of sorts, disappearing into a well hidden door on the side. For a few moments, nothing happened. However, there was a loud hissing noise, and Katsuya blinked as the doors abruptly clicked open. The screams died down, holograms fizzling out into nothingness as Yugi rushed inside to comfort his grandfather.

 

Katsuya, in the meantime, turned to Kaiba with gritted teeth. "You're a real _bitch_ ," he hissed under his breath, just low enough for only the woman to hear. "You know that? Using an old man against him... I hope you burn in hell..."

 

The woman merely scoffed, before smirking again. "How harsh, _mutt_ ," she said with a low chuckle. "Didn't you know? In business," the woman continued, walking past the teen, "You do anything you need to succeed." Katsuya tensed, watching her stop beside Yugi for a moment and then disappear into the same door her guard had walked into. He looked back at the room, gritting his teeth. Damn it, he cursed, resisting the urge to pound the ground. He looked to the side and forced himself to focus on what was important, the cursing continuing through his mind. First thing was first! He rushed over to the device, picking it up and quickly calling for an ambulance- a call which was perhaps the only simple one to make, as he cycled through a known list of friends until one answered. Making certain someone would be there to check up on the old man once he was admitted, Katsuya sucked in a deep breath and clicked the phone back into place before walking over to his friend.

 

"Yug'," he said, frowning as he watched the teen hold his grandfather's deck of cards close. Kaiba had stayed beside the kid far too long for comfort, and it had not been in silence. They'd been talking about... Something, he thought with a grimace, and quite frankly he didn't want to know what it was. But even so. "I'm comin' with yah, got it?"

 

The boy looked up, eyes wide. "You're coming..? But... Jonouchi-kun!" He shook his head, still holding back a stream of panicked tears. "You can't... You can't do that! You even tried to warn me before, you'll die if you come!"

 

He snorted, shaking his head. Honestly, he'd likely die regardless at this point- that much, he was certain. "Whatever... The fact is, I want nothing more than to punch Kaiba's pasty face in right now, but it'd be pointless with all these stupid bodyguards of his..." He looked down at his friend, gritting his teeth a moment before continuing. "But I know you'll beat him- An' I know that no matter what, we'll figure somethin' out, got it? And until then, I'll help yah!" And maybe after Yugi won he'd go and punch the bitch in the face anyways. While she was caught of guard, and while everyone else was too shocked to really pay attention.

 

"Jonouchi..." He looked down at the kid, smiling. They were friends, after all- this was what friends were for.

 

A voice from behind them interrupted, Katsuya paling as he saw Honda appear to walk toward them. Speaking of friends, it seemed he'd been right to wonder why the term had been plural in Mokuba's warning- how the hell did they convince Honda to come to a place called 'KaibaLand'? "Hey," the teen greeted, smirking. "You forget someone?"

 

As Yugi grinned with the appearance of another of his friends, Katsuya frowned- there was something yellow on his back... Rather, 'someone' he realized idly. "Nyh, Honda? Who's the brat on your back?"

 

As the toddler currently strapped to Honda's back scowled at the insult, the teen shrugged. "This guy? My big sister's kid... Kept whining about going to the Kaiba-land opening, so I ended up stuck with him for the day while she's at work... Anyways." He turned back, expression serious. "I'm glad I came now; saw the entire thing from the stands. Something tells me you guys will need me... So count me in too!"

 

At that moment, the kid began to cheer about Kaiba or something, and Honda proceeded to yell at the kid. Said kid did not take it well, what with him likely being about 3. "Oi oi! Honda, don't make the kid cry!" Come on seriously, there was enough going on as it was!

 

"SHUT UP! THIS KID IS A ROYAL PAIN IN TH-" The baby screamed, pounding on his uncle's back.

 

"That hurt! Hiroto-oji! I'm gonna tell Mama!"

 

"Shut up!" The others could only blink at the exchange, Katsuya's words falling flat. Rather well versed for three, he found himself thinking. At that moment one of the guards arrived and coughed, pulling the attention of the three boys to him.

 

"The gate to Death-T is open," he said curtly, gesturing to the door with a blank expression. "You three may pass through now."

 

The three nodded, stepping through the gate to enter a light-devoid hallway as it shut behind him. "Great," Katsuya said nervously. "Cause that ain't creepy at all right?" Dark tunnels, and no way out? It could only get worse from here.

 

Honda snorted, adjusting the weight of his nephew before turning to the blond. "Oh come on, we just got here and you're panicking?" The group continued through the hall, idly looking around in the darkness. "Damn," he said after a while. "Where does this passage even lead? I thought this was supposed to bring us to some sort of special event!"

 

Oh that was right, 'Death-T' was just a special event to the crowd wasn't it? As much as Honda would realize something was amiss, he wouldn't have had the same 'hints' that he and Yugi had. Katsuya swallowed, hands in his pockets as he looked around with a paranoid stare. "Trust me Honda, I think that 'special' is puttin' it really lightly at this point..." The word 'Death' came to mind. English or otherwise, he knew what 'Death' meant. As he said this, they came to a dimly illuminated door labelled 'DeathT 1', the boys blinking at the sight. "Well, here we are..."

 

The door opened, releasing a hissing noise as steam hit their faces.

 

-EMERGENCY-

 

"What?" Yugi blinked as sirens began sounding, the steam blocking their vision as it clouded up in front of them.

 

-EMERGENCY- 

 

"What's going on?" The hall around them was built similarly to the one they'd left, cold metal with the occasional wire visible as they moved. Sirens continued to blare, but nothing answered their questions.

 

"H-Help! Help me!" A woman's voice cried from the end of the hall, drawing further into the darkness as the three paled. "Somebody, help me!" A figure could be made out through the steam, and the boys squinted at the sight.

 

"What the, someone's-" They stopped as the source of the voice came close, the three now recognizing its owner clearly. All three stared, Katsuya shouting as Anzu revealed herself in the hall. "WHAT?"

 

The woman blinked, before pointing at the three with a frown. "What the... What are you three doing here?" She was wearing a really weird outfit, they noticed once she was close enough to make out. Strangely designed and metallic, it seemed at home in a cheesy sci-fi or similar.

 

Katsuya shook his head roughly, still shouting as he answered the question. "Gh... I think that's our question, Anzu!" Seriously, was _everyone_ here? At the very least he realized, it explained why he hadn't been able to reach anyone earlier on. Anzu shrugged, leaning against the wall now that it seemed there was no reason to remain in character.

 

"Today's the first day of work here for me," she explained. "I got fired from my Burger World job for knocking out a customer after he grabbed my ass..." Yea, he could see that. Anzu sighed, shrugging again before she smiled. "So I came here and ended up hired as a guide for this attraction. Didn't think I'd see you guys here though!" The others blinked, before Katsuya frowned.

 

"Kay... Why were yah shoutin' for help..?" Idly, he found himself looking around Anzu with those thoughts, squinting to see if any shadows lingered. He didn't see any axe-murderers...

 

Anzu blinked again, before grinning. "Oh that! That's my line. Part of the attraction," she said as she crossed her arms. "After that, there's another line I say to the guest, like this..." She resumed her panicked pose, continuing in the same frightened voice she'd used before. "The space station is being destroyed by an enemy raid! You're the only ones here who can save us! Please put on these cybervests and laser guns, and defeat them!" She paused, gauging their reactions before smiling. "See?"

 

If he had to judge, it was pretty lame actually- but it was hardly the time for that kind of critique. The blond groaned. "Anzu you are one careless twit yah know that..?"

 

She scowled. "Sheesh, my acting couldn't be that bad! I've been practising for hours..."

 

Katsuya shook his head. As if it was about that! "Moron! You don't even know what this theme-park is really about, do you!"

 

At the questioning frown Katsuya received in response, Honda merely shrugged. "Ignorance is bliss I guess... Just think Jonouchi, another time, this could've been you..."

 

He scowled. "Yea, cause I'd definitely be th' one screamin' down the halls for help right?" The look deepened as Honda inclined a small smile back. "Why you... What th' hell is that supposed to mean!"

 

"Nothing, Nothing," he said with a smirk. "Anyways, this outta be easy! Looks like this first stage is a shooting battle!" Oh yea, didn't he like... Take out someone with a BB-Gun once? From some impossible distance? Katsuya thought it over, humming to himself as he tried to remember the story. He hadn't been there after all, so he only had Honda's word on it.

 

Yugi nodded however, grabbing a vest from the side and slipping it on. "There's vests and guns over here," he muttered, ignoring Katsuya's mumblings of 'real bright, reaaaal bright' to Anzu when the woman again asked him what they'd been talking about earlier. He grabbed another of the odd looking vests, passing it to the blond. "Lets put them on!"

 

A few seconds later, the boys stood there in the vests with fairly neutral expressions to cover the distaste for the fairly nerdy looking vests and 'lasers'. "They look good on you," Anzu said with a smile, clearly holding back a laugh. "Really, they do!" Still holding the laugh back, she shook her head and typed a few things into the panel by the door. "Alright! Now this is a three-on-three shooting battle guys." She pointed over to the door, smiling. "The battle will take place inside that room, in an electric field understand?"

 

Electric field? Huh? As Anzu went on to explain the rules of the game (Aim at the sensor above the heart on the opponent's chest, and if you're hit there, you're eliminated), Katsuya frowned. It couldn't be this easy, he told himself. From what Mokuba had been saying, this was going to be fatal somehow. Yeah, Anzu said a 'light shock', but something told him that wouldn't be the case once they got into things. As they headed into the next room, Honda turned to hand his nephew to Anzu. "Hey Anzu," he said bluntly. "Watch this brat until we get back, alrigh'?"

 

Anzu blinked. "Er, ok..." She held him, smiling a moment before the kid suddenly buried his head in her breasts. "W-What the-!" So the child was both oddly well spoken and a pervert-by-example... What kind of things were going on at Honda's, seriously?

 

"Alright! Lets go," Honda said as he ran up to join the others. "Time to shoot some enemy raids!" The three left through the door, Anzu nervously shouting a 'Good Luck!' as they left.

 

Well. Here went nothing. As the steam blew in their faces, the three walked inside.

 

* * *

 

As Kaiba watched the cameras in the building, she scowled. "Who hired that girl," she finally shouted to one of the employees in the room. "She's one of their friends, didn't I say to do a complete background check on any employees?" Honestly, why was it that everyone she hired these days had some level of incompetence toward their work...

 

The man bowed his head in apology. "My mistake, Sir..."

 

"Tch," the woman shrugged, crossing her legs as she leaned back in the chair. "It's fine... They're entering the field of Death-T 1 'Shooting Stardust'," she observed calmly, before continuing on. "Is everything ready?"

 

He nodded, a set of three profiles appearing on the screen. "Of course; three opponents have been arranged, each one professionals as requested." Seto chuckled as she read over the notes on the three, before grinning maliciously.

 

"Heheheh..." ' _Yugi,_ ' she thought to herself with a cold smirk. ' _You and your friends are armed with little more than malfunctioning toys... But of one of the others shoot you, it'll send a shock deadly enough to melt skin through your bodies! I have the front row seat to your deaths,_ ' she thought with a grin. ' _I hope this will be as fun for you as it is me!_ ' "Hahaha... AHAHAHA!"

 


	9. Chapter 7 | The Amusement Park of Horrors

Death-T 1 as expected, was completely set up. When Kaiba's smug face appeared on a screen in the room, it took all he had not to just point and say 'Hey, guys? _Wanna know a secret?_ ' out of spite- mostly because not only would no one believe him, but something told him it would likely make things worse. They'd just have to push through this 'Death-T' thing and stay alive through it. After all... They could handle anything right?

 

...Right?

 

As it turned out pure luck saved their ass when in an attempt to hop the obstacles in the room, Katsuya came across one of their three opponents. It'd been easy enough to spot him from above- considering the look of utter shock on the guy's face when he did it at least. Apparently one of them had decided to go ahead in an attempt to sneak up on them, failing to consider that someone might indeed have the gall to cheat and hop the walls. Deciding against his crappy aim, Katsuya had proceeded to jump on the man's face, easily knocking him out in a brief fist fight before fleeing for his life from the two other opponents they had. Running was cowardly- except when the other team had lasers that sent high voltage shocks through the vests. Something that had become rather evident when not only did the shots that brushed against their shoulders hurt like fucking hell, but also when they'd started bad-mouthing Kaiba in front of Johji again.

 

Honda's nephew was not one to mess with, if the quick draw he'd made on them was any sign. While they avoided being shot by the kid, the vest on the wall wasn't so lucky; even as a melted mass of metal, it was still cracking with electricity. As luck would have it however, the gun Anzu had was the same as their opponents- so from that, they successfully took out the two others using that one gun, using a plan of Honda's. Anzu in the meantime, proceeded to rip off her uniform with a scowl, quitting angrily as they proceeded to the next stage.

 

Of course he ended up being asked if he had quit his own job after that, but he pointedly decided to bring the woman's attention to what could possibly await them in the next challenge, rather than go into the fact that he didn't even have time to sort that out. Let alone deal with anything Mokuba tried to do to prevent it. The others were already discussing how potentially dangerous the last one had been- and knowing Kaiba, the coward's sick idea of a 'game' had a lot more in store for them. Theories grew more vast and bizarre as they walked; they ranged from rabid dogs in a pit, to really far-fetched ones like 'Death-Rays'. Though he didn't put that one past her either to tell the truth.

 

Nonetheless none of them were right, and as they came to Death-T 2 things only got worse. Why, he asked himself yet again, _why_ did it have to be this? When Mokuba had almost slipped in saying Kaiba would have leverage over him, he'd had good reason to consider saying it. As he sat stiff on the roller coaster, he bit his tongue until he could taste copper to keep from screaming in fear. This 'game', he thought as he grew paler and paler still, was completely centred on the supernatural. Even Honda admitted that a chill was running up his spine- if there had been anything that could be used against them- and specifically Katsuya- it was absolutely this. Katsuya shuddered as he and the others took a seat on the coaster, Hobson taking a seat at the very back to act as its narrator and conductor. They were seated in chairs of metal, and as a helmet and straps locked around everyone's wrists and head, he gulped. "Oh God..." He couldn't move even an inch! Trapped like a tiny tiny rat in a... Something. "You..." He swallowed, attempting to turn to the butler with a glare. "What the hell are you planning?"

 

If the last room had been any sign, he had a feeling he knew what these chairs were- their very structure left little to guess about after all. "The game of death has begun," the now cloaked man announced, voice lowered to a haunting tone. He was the perfect choice to hire for this, he lamented bitterly- perfect, in that he was doing his job _far_ too well. "The place this ride will take you, 'Death-T 2', is called 'Murder Mansion'," he began, face unseen by the others as he spoke from the back of the cart. "It is a place soaked through and through with terror..." He didn't say! "And as for this place... This is the Grim Reaper's Chair Ride." Hobson chuckled darkly, before continuing. "Given who's in it, it's doubtful you'll even make it to the mansion..."

 

He swallowed, the others rendered silent as he attempted to find the strength to speak. "What the hell do yah mean... 'Grim Reaper's Chair'?" And thanks, thanks so much for the reference to his greatest fear! Nice to see someone cared, really! (He was so fucked...)

 

Hobson chuckled again. "Well, as you've likely realized, you're currently sitting in electric chairs, devices that have sent countless criminals to meet with death..." Still laughing under his breath, he continued. "During the ride, all sorts of things will play through the dark... And if you scream even once, that microphone will pick up on it, and activate the chair!" Well... Shit. Katsuya swallowed as the others tensed, each of them shooting glances in his direction. Shit...

 

Shit shit shit, he was never good with ghosts and zombies and crap! The ride began, and as the carts moved a single silent mantra entered everyone's minds. Nobody... Nobody make a sound!

 

* * *

 

_Shit shit shit shit shit_.

 

The cart rolled in the darkness, nothing happening for a while.

 

_Shit shit shit shit shit shit shit_.

 

Abruptly, a horde of monsters and mummies and all sorts of typical haunted house type devices fell from the ceiling, Katsuya still biting his tongue as they went. Screams echoed along the chamber, blood practically oozing out of the walls and loosely mummified skeletons reached out from afar.

 

_SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT!_

 

An axe narrowly missed slicing the 'car' clean in two, and a few bones clattered to the ground in their place. In his head- lest he give himself the chance to scream- he repeated a string of curses and closed his eyes. ' _Oh god oh god oh god..._ ' He could do this. He could handle th- Wait what the hell was blowing behind him! A choking sound escaped him as the blood from inside his mouth was swallowed in shock, and though his eyes shot open, it all went black.

 

... And he didn't wake until the end of the ride. As the others were quick to explain to him, he'd passed out at some point early on- which was fortunate for them, as the moment he did wake up, the scream he'd been holding back was released very loudly.

 

"HAAAAA! AAAAH! AHHHHHH HOLY SHIT GET AWAY!" he screamed, body still certain of the chilling breath that he'd felt before blacking out.

 

The others chuckled around him, watching as the blond soon realized he was 'safe'. "J-Jonouchi-kun," Yugi said as he undid the helmet covering his friend's head. "The ride is over..." Oh.

 

He looked around, coughing. So it was. Katsuya blinked, standing up as he was freed. "Er... Right... So where..." His eyes widened as he looked at the large 'haunted mansion' type set up the cart had taken them too, staring in shocked silence. "Shit..."

 

He could practically hear Kaiba laughing in the background. ' _Welcome to Murder Mansion_ ', she would be saying with that smug voice. "This place is just as creepy as the last one!" If not more! And yet there they were, walking towards the entrance. Idly he noted that Hobson had gotten himself nicely fried up, though if his muttering was any consolation, he'd apparently managed to avoid death somehow. Probably rigged the machine, if he wanted to be honest with himself. Though when he thought more on the matter, he could remember Hobson explaining that he had been a torture expert while work training was on- which could no doubt contribute to an 'immunity'. Between staying in that mansion and participating in the 'Security Work Training' he decided, he'd picked up a fair amount of weird crap.

 

The small trek through the 'Murder Mansion' (which was hardly a mansion in comparison, but names meant everything) also taught him a fair bit. Or at least, it taught him three things. One, apparently cards could be used as a way to keep track of your Grandfather's health. Or at least that was his best guess, with how Yugi was talking about it. He wasn't sure how it worked- but it wasn't the kind of thing to look at oddly when you knew the kid long enough. The second fact was that you could fit a lot of stuff in a skyscraper; this included replica houses and full size yards. It may have paled in comparison to the Kaiba manor, but just about everything paled when compared to that place. And finally three...

 

Kaiba was far, _far_ more twisted than he had ever thought, even after what he'd seen in the 'arena' with Sugoroku. The door forward had to be opened by a switch. All four of them were required to put their hands through the handholds that covered the switches, which made Katsuya wonder how Kaiba had been so sure that there would be four people instead of three. Perhaps it had been insurance- either way, it gave him the chills just as much as everything else before them. Murder Mansion, as it was called, was dark, musky, and more than true to its name. Using a vague clue of the misspelled, English word 'blood' (It had a second 'l' ), Yugi had barely managed to figure out what switch would open the door. And just in time, as the other three switches would release a guillotine to cut off all of their hands whether they chose the wrong answer or waited two minutes too long. That had been with the help of a clue- what would have happened if Yugi hadn't grabbed that piece of paper from the floor! Or if one of them hadn't known enough about English to even notice?

 

He shuddered not at the thought of that but instead at the situation he was in at present, as he faced down the namesake for that place. For all that he had whimpered and moaned about the earlier parts of the challenge, all that happened before had nothing on this- not by a long shot. "Damn it Kaiba," he hissed as he stood, chained to a pillar with none other than the famed sociopath 'Chopper Man'. "You're so gettin' it when I find yah..."

 

There was no second floor to this 'building', despite all illusions. Instead, they'd traveled down into a hole in the floor after listening to a chilling tale from the woman who 'invited' them there. He didn't know which was worse. The fact that Kaiba had actually hired the subject of the story, or the fact that the story was real to begin with.

 

It had happened last summer, by the lake that the district bordered on. One night, ten boy scouts camping in the area were slaughtered, cut completely into pieces with an axe. Not a single person could piece the boys bodies back together. It was even questioned as to whether or not there were any survivors for a while, until DNA testing showed that there were indeed at least ten bodies in the ground hacked mess. The killer was aptly named by the media for his skills of course, and in the end no one had found him; if anything, they simply allowed themselves some relief when it appeared the incident wasn't going to repeat.

 

Until now, apparently. Katsuya swallowed as he stared the killer down, watching Honda's nephew squirm with fear under the man's gaze. Chess pieces, Kaiba had called them when she greeted them at this challenge. Each of them were players on a giant board that Kaiba had set them on, and they were in her domain. But damn it... To search out and hire a sociopathic murderer? To actually hire the man who had killed and completely destroyed the bodies of all those kids? He was the only one in the room besides the murderer and Johji. Only one person was allowed after all- and hell if he was letting anyone else get into this kind of danger. Street-smarts or not he and Honda could only go so far, and while he knew for a fact that he could hold his own against even the worst he hadn't felt so grateful for the 'mandatory training' Kaiba's security team went through in his life.

 

Katsuya glared at the screen that had blipped out in 'Chopper's arms, drawing back from the mans horrific appearance. What to do, what to do... The entire floor was covered with tar, and weapons of all sorts lined the walls. The only light they had was candles, and if those fell on the ground they were screwed. "Gh..." At the moment, he was doing the best he could to avoid Chopper while still being chained to the freak, but... "GYAH-GH!"

 

The chainsaw nicked his shoulder as he dodged, the teen holding back a series of curses to focus on the fight. Blood- he could see the blood on both the blade and at his own shoulder, and damn that thing hurt! "JONOUCHI-KUN!" Shouts filled the air from the other side of the door, all three of the teens attempting to see through the tiny window they'd been given. "JONOUCHI!" Katsuya shouted as he ducked yet another strike from 'Chopper's chainsaw, attempting to run on the tar floor without falling on his face.

 

"Not helpin' guys!" The door was locked of course. They couldn't get in, he and the brat couldn't get out. It was why they were still in this mess after all. "Damn it..." He watched as his opponent attempted to get the chainsaw out of the centre pillar, where it had become stuck. At least that weapon was out of the way now, but there were still the other weapons on the wall to consider. He looked at the chain on his wrist, scowling. This didn't help matters at all, and he was going to forever hate this kid for it; regardless of the fact that Chopper had been threatening him in order to lure one of them to the room.

 

Abruptly, Yugi pointed his arm through the bars on the door towards the candle. "Jonouchi-kun! There! Hurry!" The candle? A pause, and he realized what Yugi meant. The candle _stick-_ He rushed over, tugging the weakly affixed candle holder from the wall and ripping the candle off. Of course... There was a point to hold the candle in place, he could use this! He got to work immediately, praying that he got this over with before 'Chopper' got his chainsaw free.

 

After all, they had a plan now. A plan that had Kaiba turning the screen on Chopper Man's chest back on and shouting through it in shock. "I don't believe it," she said with wide eyes. "You unlocked the handcuffs..." Ohoho, that and much more...

 

He smirked, moving to the side as the chain was revealed to be firmly affixed to the very door separating the group. Chopper's strength was more than enough to rip it from its hinges, allowing Katsuya and the kid to escape. But that wasn't all they'd done. "It's called," Katsuya said with a dark laugh as the candle fell off the door seemingly in slow motion. "'Using your opponents strength against yah." He smirked darkly as Chopper Man stared at the candle, clearly horrified as it fell into the tar to set it ablaze. "I might not be a genius Kaiba, but that fire and tar ain't gonna mix that well..." He quickly took refuge with Johji on the small strip of concrete around the room, the others following after him as they continued through the second doorway there. Kaiba's voice was cut off as the screen fizzled out, destroyed in the flames. And as he and everyone else escaped through the second door in the room, howls of pained screams pierced the air amid the smell of smoking flesh stinging their nostrils. The 'Chopper Man' was burning to dust in a pool of tar, and no one was going to miss him.

 

' _We're comin' for yah, Kaiba,_ ' the blond thought with a determined frown. ' _An' you'll get what's coming!_ '

 

Time to move on to Death-T 3.

 

* * *

 

If there was ever a time that Anzu's dream of a career in dance would come to help them, he sure as hell hadn't expected it to be here. Even with all the good it had done for the start however, it meant little in the end. ' _Don't give up!_ ', he'd told Yugi.

 

_Don't give up_ , even though we've just been locked in a tiled room, the door over 10 meters up the wall, and blocks are falling from the sky. Blocks that managed to hold a rhythm of sorts that Anzu followed and directed them through until the blocks all led them to the hole in the room. Suddenly, he was very very appreciative of her 'impossible' dream of taking dance in New York. Dancing saved their lives just now.

 

_Don't give up_ , even though your Grandpa is probably dead thanks to the heart pressure that 'illusion of death crap' put him through earlier. Neither of them had phones as of yet (though at least one of them was considering it now), so they had no news on the old man's condition- only Yugi's hunch based on the sensation of the cards.

 

_Don't give up_ , even though the so called games up to this point have all been rigged, and have made it fairly clear that Seto Fucking Kaiba is either twisted beyond all help, or a natural born psychopath...or perhaps both.

 

_Don't give up_ , he thought, pounding his fists into the cube that now separated them from Honda and the room of falling blocks they'd climbed to get through the door. Even when Honda tells you to move on as his jacket becomes wedged between two of the falling blocks... And yet another one separates you from him before you can even tell him to shut up.

 

' _Don't give up Yugi'_ , he thought, tears running down his face, ' _When you're the reason why I bother doing things any more._ ' A kid who believed in 'good' in everyone... He'd thought that was stupid, when he first met Yugi. Completely moronic, useless, and self-destructive. After all; he'd been a useless bully, with a useless father in a useless world... And for some reason, that kid bothered to stick up for him after all the crap he put him through. And because of it, suddenly that useless world wasn't so useless... And maybe, just maybe, he wasn't so useless either.

 

Don't give up, never give up... Because regardless of all the crap that he'd heard and gone through lately, he was never giving up on that kid. He and Honda both, so he'd better not give up on himself. But now one of those people that Yugi had stood up for... Was gone.

 

"HONDA!" He shouted at the brick pointlessly, pounding at the wall until he felt his knuckles bleed. "HONDA! WE'LL WAIT FOR YOU!" He breathed heavily, shouting again. "DON'T DIE YOU MORON! WE'RE WAITING FOR YOU! SO YOU... YOU USE THE GUTS I KNOW YOU HAVE, AND GET OUT OF THIS SITUATION!"

 

There was a permanent marker face on his hand, or part of one at least. They'd waited a long time before blocks had begun to fall in that room, and during that time Anzu had drawn the face so that any time they looked at their hand they'd remember the things they did together. They'd remember the good days at Burger World, or the arcade. The weird days, like at that professor's house, or the museum, or at school with that puzzle letter. They'd remember the bad days...

 

' _This is as far as I go_ ,' he'd said.

 

And suddenly, he was gone.

 

"Anzu," Katsuya began, breathing harshly as he clenched his fists. "Yugi," he continued, turning slowly as he wiped whatever tears had come from his eyes. "Let's go!"

 

"Wait," Anzu said, Katsuya blinking as she looked down at Yugi. The boy was curled in on himself, face screwed up in some sort of pain as though attempting to fight something off. "Yugi looks... Yugi doesn't look so good..." Katsuya had merely stared, frozen as a dark feeling came over him.

 

This was _so_ not the time for things to get worse.

 

' _You don't know_ ,' Mokuba had kept saying. ' _He became a different person_ '. Something told him that they were going to meet that 'Other Yugi' really soon, and all he could do was pray to anything listening that this 'Other Yugi' wasn't as bad as Mokuba had made him out to be.

 

* * *

 

This game, Seto told herself as she laughed darkly at her 'rival's misery, was like chess.

 

If she thought about the game like that, each player had a corresponding piece. Yugi, of course, was the king. Anzu Mazaki, the player she hadn't even considered until the end of Death-T 1, was the bishop. In her mind, Yugi had no 'Queen', deserved no Queen. No, the most powerful of pieces had long since been reserved for someone else- so for Yugi's side, that piece had been removed. Seto smirked, knocking one of the remaining pieces over on the board with her own. If Jonouchi was Yugi's knight, his 'right hand', then Honda was the rook, the 'castle' that held it all together. "And now," she said aloud, arms crossed with a smirk. "I've taken his rook... And soon, it will be 'Check Mate'." And with one piece down, the rest would be soon to follow.

 

"Those guys are stubborn, aren't they Nee-sama?" Seto didn't turn as Mokuba's voice came into the room, the boy holding a serious and quite possibly angered expression on his face. Now what was he doing up here when he was due for 'T-4', which he'd spent all week convincing the woman to have him participate in? Trying to wheedle his way into her 'good graces' again? He'd long lost that right. "The end of the game is coming to a close," he said with a frown, balling his fists. "You remember our bet?" The boy's fists clenched, and he continued. "Before we created Death-T... You and I, we made a bet.. On the stage where Yugi would lose!" His voice sounded pathetically pleading, Seto thought to herself as she continued to watch the screens. He was trying too hard, far too hard, to get on her good side in the middle of 'work'. Nonetheless, her brother continued. "And you, you bet that he would make it to Death-T 5! Isn't that right, Seto-neesama?"

 

She nodded, still looking ahead. "That's right... And you, of course, bet that he would only reach Death-T 4..."

 

Mokuba went red, gritting his teeth. "You... Nee-sama... You not only let _my_ employees get involved, but Death-T 4... That was my battle!"

 

"Yes, yes," she said with a dismissive tone, still focused on the screens. "And my bet, Death-T 5, is my duel monster's match against him. I'm honestly curious as to why you're so upset about this." The boy growled, shouting at his older sister in rage.

 

"You're betting on my losing to Yugi! Of course I'm 'upset'!"

 

She scoffed. "And I stand by that bet as well, Mokuba." The woman turned slightly to look at her brother, before continuing. "You can't beat Yugi... And from the start, I was opposed to you being involved at all."

 

He tensed, scarcely able to respond. "You... You..." The woman continued, uncaring.

 

"Mokuba... You challenged Yugi to a game behind my back..." Seto turned back to the screens, ignoring the expression on Mokuba's face as the boy was reminded of the horrific experience. "I don't know the result," she said coldly. "But given your 'week long leave', I can take a guess!"

 

_Dark, dark, dark_ , he wasn't there, he wasn't there... Mokuba swallowed, shrinking back a fair amount under the force of those words. "That... That..." He gulped, shaking his head. "I just wanted... I... I just wanted your approval... Just once..."

 

"GET A CLUE," she shouted, voice sounding through the room as a cruel reminder to the day that she'd begun to treat her brother like this. It echoed in his ears with the words of the past, and no amount of bracing himself could prepare him for what followed. "In the world of business, there's no room for affection!" She continued shouting, turning on her brother with a cold snarl. "And until you know that Mokuba, you'll never be anything more than a LOSER!"

 

He stood there, frozen for a few moments as tears ran down his face. "You..." He choked, before shouting back at his sister and making to flee from the room. "JUST WATCH, 'NII-SAMA'," he snapped with spite. "I'LL WIN THIS MATCH!"

 

Ha! A joke at best, Seto thought, ignoring the boy as he left.

 

Mokuba stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him rather loudly. He turned to the body guards with wide and crazed eyes, chocking for a few moments before he could finally speak. "Is Death-T 4 prepared?"

 

They nodded, making themselves ignorant to both the tears and the incensed look on the boy's face. "Yes sir!"

 

He turned, storming down the hall to the stage he'd set up for the event. "Good! Let's go!"

 

Just watch, he thought, wiping the tears of his face with a scowl. Just watch... Seto would see his battle- see his true strength, and then she'd be happy, and smile, and play with him and everyone else he liked and everyone would be happy...

 

Everyone... Like it should have been...

 

The gates opened, and he entered the stage, waiting for his opponent to arrive with an absolutely murderous expression of determination.

 

He learned from the best after all.

 


	10. Chapter 8 | The Illusion of Death

In the hall to Death-T 4 Yugi was breathing heavily, sweating profusely as he shook. "Yugi," Katsuya said, grabbing the boy's shoulders slowly as he tried to look the other in the eye. "Yug', are you alright?" Please say yes, please say yes, _please..._

 

"There's something _inside me_..." The blond froze as his friend said this, eyes wide as the boy shook his head. His grip around the other's shoulders stiffened, locking as he found himself unable to move. "I can't control it...I..." Not only was that not what he wanted to hear but that sounded _really creepy!_

 

Anzu watched nervously, looking down and shaking her head. "Yugi... I'm sure...” She gulped audibly. “...You're just tired from all the strain," she said, as though reassuring herself as well. "It's ok Yugi... It's alright..."

 

Yet instead Yugi shook his head, stumbling slightly against Katsuya's grip; for it wasn't alright, not at all. "N... There's... Something I haven't told you..." No. No no _no no no_ , there was no way all the horror stories that Mokuba had shared those nights after Kaiba's 'secret' was completely busted were true. They had to... They had to just be nightmares, nightmares that conveniently happened with blackouts Yugi had, each one! Just nightmares! "I think," Yugi said, Katsuya realizing just now that each one happened right before a 'game', having pressed the boy for some information on the blackouts days before, "Inside me... There's another me," he announced before wincing, holding his head in pain. "But I don't know him... _I don't know him at all_..."

 

Mokuba's voice had a bad habit of entering his mind with all this crap he decided, the boy's words echoing through his ears yet again. ' _The_ other _Yugi... He did... He did..._ ' A really, really bad habit.

 

He gulped, shaking his head. "A- Another Yugi... That can't..." That couldn't be possible. It couldn't, and yet...

 

"Ever since I solved the millennium puzzle," Yugi began, slowly regaining his breath as he stood and gently removed himself from Katsuya's hold, "I've had black outs... I... I told you about those Jonouchi-kun... But what I didn't tell you was..." The boy choked, shaking his head as tears began to develop in his eyes. "I was so _scared_ ," he said quietly, swallowing as he attempted to right his breathing. "You'd just become my friends... And I thought, if you found out about this other me, that you would leave!" He held his puzzle, almost like a security blanket. "That's why, that's why I was so scared! That's why..." The boy froze as he felt Katsuya's hand on his shoulder again, looking up at the blond. It was a calmer grip, rather than a tight one- a gesture of comfort more than firm support.

 

"Yugi," he said, deciding that regardless of truths in this entire mess, whatever he said would never change. "I swear, even if there's another 'Yugi' inside you..." Even if that other Yugi had apparently done some serious crap to Mokuba in self defense (or at least, he decided to assume it had been self-defense). "We'll still always be friends, understand?" At Yugi's expression of disbelief, he turned to look at the far end of the hall. "Always!"

 

Anzu as well nodded, smiling. "Really Yugi... Did you think we'd just up and leave you for something like that..?" Apparently so- Though Katsuya had a feeling that had it been anyone else, the situation wouldn't have quite been the same. Yugi probably had a good reason to worry, when he thought about it.

 

Nonetheless they were soon running through the hallway to move onward, sounds of muffled cheering coming over them. Further ahead, a bright light was becoming visible at what was probably the exit, the shouts only growing louder as they came near. "There it is," Katsuya found himself shouting. "The next stage! Lets do this!"

 

They froze upon walking out onto the rail-less bridge, looking forwards as a familiar voice greeted them. Katsuya felt his excited grin crumble- Mokuba was more of a part of this than he'd guessed. "Th... This is..." Well.

 

Shit. "Death-T 4!" Mokuba laughed as he finished Katsuya's statement for him, walking towards the clear box in the center of the room with a smirk. The box was almost identical in appearance to that of the one Kaiba had faced Yugi's Grandpa in- And if Kaiba's last events had been any clue... "Welcome to my stage, Yugi!" The doors to the cube opened, and he motioned inside. "It's time for us to go head-to-head! Enter the battle box alone, understand?" There wasn't room for more than two anyways, Katsuya briefly grumbled to himself- and would Yugi have really needed someone to help win?

 

Yugi tensed, biting his lip as he nodded. Katsuya in the meantime, clenched his fists and bit his tongue through a scowl. Thinking the words over, it likely meant they couldn't crowd the box instead. "Yug'," he said as the boy began moving forwards. "I'll be watchin' from outside alrigh'?" It was the best he could do really.

 

The boy nodded. "Yeah... I...” With a deep breath, he smiled and looked forward. “I won't be a coward anymore." Coward- He didn't think he was a coward! Hell if anything he was the coward, the way he'd dragged everyone into this even with fair warning. Yugi however had taken all of it and, until Honda got stuck back there, held a fairly optimistic view on things. If that was 'cowardice', he'd eat his uniform! "I'm not really alone after all, right," Yugi continued. "I've got you guys!" The blond stood there, before smiling and nodding in response. "All of you," Yugi said as he glanced back at his friends with that smile. "Anzu, Honda-kun, Jonouchi-kun... You all showed me. So now, I have true courage! This time... I won't be afraid!"

 

Katsuya blinked, before nodding yet again. "Yeah!" And then, Katsuya thought to himself as the boy began to shake slightly, he realized what he'd meant by being a 'coward'.

 

"I..." Yugi turned to face the box again, his entire posture relaxing. "I'm not afraid... Of my other self any more." It was as though there was an invisible flash of light, a storm of sorts at that instance alone. But in that instant, he understood what Mokuba had meant by 'another Yugi'.

 

"Yu...Yugi..!"

 

His appearance became sharper somehow, more dramatic and fierce. A few strands of his blond hair rose to cling with the rest of his mysteriously gravity-defiant locks, and his eyes gained a regal tone to them. This was him- and now they were going to watch him fight. "Jonouchi," the 'other' Yugi said, turning with a fierce stare in addition to the smile that could recognizably be considered 'friendly'. "Anzu... I'll definitely win!" As 'Yugi' walked over to face Mokuba in the cube, Katsuya couldn't think of the kid being wrong.

 

He understood now of course, what Mokuba had meant by 'change'. And oh, what a change that had been! Yet for all of Mokuba's fear in earlier times, he couldn't feel too worried about how Yugi would do from that point on. The game began. Again, they couldn't hear anything, but as Katsuya moved to try and get closer, he found himself held back by one of the theme park guards. "Gh! What the..."

 

The guard behind him smirked, holding a gun rather close to the back of his skull. "How's it goin', newbie?" Oh just fine, sitting here with a gun at the back of his head... Yeah, he was great. While Anzu settled for glaring at the guards, Katsuya opted to go with the theory that the glass was only soundproofed on one end. He turned his attention back to the box, where his friend was currently looking at them with a worried expression.

 

"Yugi," he shouted loudly. "Don' worry about us! Just kick his ass!" While Mokuba visibly deflated a small bit at the comment, Yugi merely nodded and turned to face Mokuba once again. "Now then..." He looked at the guards through the corner of his eye, coughing nervously. "Soooo... How's it crackin? Think I'll be able t' talk to my boss once this is over?" Or would he get shot in the head for his troubles?

 

The guard snorted, before shrugging. "Be our guest- we're only here to make sure you twits don't interrupt the match."

 

The other one nodded. "What he said; like we care what happens after... Provided you make it to the next match when he loses." Such faith they had in their boss. Who had hired these guys again? Katsuya held his tongue and nodded, before watching the two in the room for an idea of what was going on. Abruptly however, his attention was drawn to the large 'CapMon' board below the box and platform.

 

"Sheesh," he muttered to himself as monsters appeared on it. It figured that this would be a CapMon battle. As he looked back at the glass box, he frowned. Whatever Mokuba had said had Yugi on edge; something told him it had to do with the conditions of 'after the match'. He swallowed, using all he had to look at the two in the cube rather than the board below.

 

Over the speakers, an announcer called the match start, the 'demonstration' fading from view. "CAPSULE MONSTER CHESS," he called, the crowd cheering. "AND THE LOSER WILL GET A PENALTY GAME, ' THE SENSATION OF DEATH' !" The blond gaped as the announcer said this, blood draining from his face. Shit. They seriously announced that kind of thing in front of crowds of kids? At least the other crap was 'private showing', but this? In front of adults it would have even been bad, right now there were nothing but children in the stands!

 

Monsters appeared on the board below, Katsuya visibly wincing as he took a quick glance at Yugi's. He didn't know much about the game but from what Mokuba was always going on about on their own time, those monsters were not a fair match up in the least. Nonetheless he opted to ignore those thoughts, shouting after his friend and cheering him on with as much faith and confidence as he had for him thus far. "Yug'," he called out, unable to cup his hands for the moment. "Y' gotta win alright! For Honda, and Gramps!" Not to mention for the 'real' Yugi's sake.

 

He swallowed, realizing just what would happen when the match ended as that particular 'warning' came to mind. Monsters would appear within the box again and just as before the victim would be left to fall into insanity... And Katsuya had no doubt that Mokuba would not be spared the punishment from his sister. Maybe, just maybe while Yugi advanced to face Kaiba he thought, he could break Mokuba out. Break in through the doors, pull him out before it was too late... He watched as Yugi crossed his arms, the monsters on his team remaining completely immobile as Mokuba's advanced further. Damn it... What was he thinking, his team was a sitting duck! Level 1s and 2s against an entire team of 5s! All he was doing was greeting death with wide arms... The blond winced as Mokuba's monster took out two of Yugi's five, before continuing to watch. What the hell was he thinking... There had to be something else here! Anything!

 

And suddenly, things were even. The crowd froze for a second before shouting with surprise, Katsuya unable to keep a grin off his face at the sudden turnaround. "Yeah! Keep goin' Yugi!" As Yugi's 'mole' fooled Mokuba's monsters into killing each other off, the teen sent one of his after another of Mokuba's own. For a moment, it seemed pointless; it was level 2 against level 5 after all. However, with a loud sound of explosion, both teams were down one monster yet again. "Woah..." Remind him to never ever ever play Capmon with Yugi, he thought to himself. Not that there were many games he could hold his own against him with, but it was a heck of a play.

 

The game continued. Yugi's level two monster gained access to an 'evolution' square, becoming a level '5' before striking down the fourth of Mokuba's team. Only one remained; now Yugi had the advantage. Where he and his opponent had been evenly matched, it was now two to one. It was the final move. It had to be, given that the pair's monsters were now facing each other. For a brief moment, Mokuba's was the one still standing, charging towards Yugi's tiny little 'mole' with a wicked smirk. The moth that Yugi had owned fell to bits behind it, unable to move. The delay was only that however- 'Bigfoot' as Mokuba's last monster was called crumbled into pieces, Yugi's mole looking around with shock.

 

He'd won.

 

Katsuya turned as the crowd roared, looking up at the guards quickly. "Oi," he snapped, the guard turning with a blink. "You said when the match was over; if I move, you gonna take back those words an' shoot me?" The only answer from the guard was a shocked 'Mokuba-sama', as the guns were momentarily brought down. The crowd cheered, questioning loudly who the 'pointy-headed guy' was as Katsuya turned to shout at them on the way to the box. "Morons! He's not 'That Pointy-Headed Guy'... He's my friend, Yugi!" Honestly, show the guy some respect! He turned his attention back to the box, before freezing, the smile dropping cold. Just as Yugi left the box, doors opening for any to enter, Kaiba's face appeared on the screens above.

 

And while Mokuba couldn't see it what they did, the game box being underneath the device, it was easy to tell that he was afraid.

 

"K-Kaiba!" He growled, watching as the teen merely smirked in response.

 

"It took you long enough, Yugi..." The woman sighed, both the boy and Katsuya turning a glare to the screen. "I'm sick of waiting... And I'm bored of watching these sideshows," She laughed, before fixing Yugi with a cold stare. "Now, take that elevator to the final stage... I'm expecting you."

 

Yugi nodded, walking towards the elevator as Katsuya continued to watch. The blond shook with rage as for a moment, Kaiba's eyes drifted over him with a flash of cold mirth. Inside the box, Mokuba was shivering, and just now he noticed that there was still another screen aimed just so that the kid could see how... _Disappointed_ his older sister really was. And likely only that. "S-Setoniisama," he said, somehow managing to cling to the facade of 'brothers' even under all of the pressure. Honestly, Katsuya had to wonder how he did it; if it'd been him, he had a feeling he'd have broken long ago.

 

She merely turned, eyes looking down on the boy from afar with a cold dead stare to them. "Those

pathetic, lingering eyes... Like a dog's," she said, briefly looking at Katsuya again before snorting. "I've felt them on my back for years..." The woman turned her face still further from the boy, continuing. "I've always told you Mokuba... Play with fire, and you'll get burned." Nice lessons to teach an eleven year old really, but the snark in his thoughts faded quick. All three of them at the box- Katsuya, Yugi, and Mokuba- tensed at the meaning her words.

 

"Seto-niisama," the boy cried, shaking his head. "Seto-niisama, no, don't..." Oh god... He knew the woman was a bitch but she really _was_ going to go through with this, wasn't she?

 

"Remember Mokuba? Only the winner can leave the box. The loser faces a penalty game, that's the law of Death-T!" There was a clicking noise as Seto said this, tone cold and dismissive as holograms began to fill the room. Smoke blurred the boy from sight, and the crowd only seemed to cheer at that fact. The boy shook, and within seconds his screams filled the room.

 

"NO! NO! _NOOOO_!" Fuck no. Katsuya's eyes grew wider, the teen shaking his head as he stood frozen on the spot for a second. Fuck. _NO_. Yugi turned just as the screams started, but his friend was already moving.

 

"Mokuba!"

 

Yugi watched Katsuya charge the box, ignoring the shouts of the guards as they drew their weapons. "Tch... Jonouchi!"

 

The blond's ears were numb to everything except for Mokuba's cries. "HELP ME! _HELP ME_!" His eyes narrowed as he charged forwards, the crowd blending into a dull roar as everything else seemed to move in slow motion. Nothing but screams filled the air as Katsuya ducked through the holographic fog, and the sound of a bullet cracking against the glass wall the least of his concerns. "NEE-SAMA! SOMEONE! _HELP_!" He coughed, making his way through the dense and synthetic fog. 'Solid Vision' right? Same thing from the rollercoaster they were on before this crap happened right? Kaiba wasn't lying when she said 'solid' he thought with a grimace. Entering the room, Katsuya saw very soon just why Mokuba was so afraid. It was dark. Pitch black in there to create the illusion of endless space and yet though all of that, he could still make out a gleam of 'light' on an imaginary monster's bloodied teeth. They reached for the boy, who already had another clamping down on his arm with a roar before Katsuya snapped himself out of it.

 

The table was flung aside as its cables stretched and snapped, and his arms wrapped around the screaming, flailing child while he shut his eyes. Mokuba buried his face into Katsuya's shirt, and the blond did his best to protect him from what never existed. "It'll be alright kid... It'll be alright, hang on!" Shit. He turned his head, biting his lip as the 'monsters' began to turn on him, their objective now hidden by another being. He couldn't see anything in here, so where the hell was the door! "Gh!" One beast clamped its teeth down to try and force him to release their prey, only for Katsuya to hold onto the boy tighter. Solid vision... Really... Really hurt... "Gh..." Don't scream, he thought to himself, struggling to fight the beasts off. Don't scream..! "It... It'll be alrigh' Mokuba jus' hang on..." he choked, shoulder-checking the next 'monster' to try its luck. Damn it, where was that door!

 

"Jonouchi! Mokuba!" He turned, giving a sigh of relief as a hand came through the 'fog'. "Grab my hand!" Not about to refuse he did just that, the pair of them quickly pulled through and stumbling to the floor of the third 'bridge' with a gasp of air. Idly, he noted that his arm was bleeding- either something was messed up with those holograms, or that thing in science about the brain doing everything was true. Either way he was paying more attention in class from now on.

 

He looked at Yugi, watching as Mokuba momentarily drew back from the teen and further into Katsuya's uniform jacket. "Wh-Why.." The boy coughed, shaking with a cold sweat as he looked up at Yugi with wide eyes. "Why did you do that? Why did both of you..." That was the question wasn't it? It wasn't too hard to answer though. Yugi smiled, turning from where he was about to continue to the elevator.

 

"Mokuba," he said, the confident tone throwing Katsuya off even now. "I was able to beat you because my friends helped me, each in their own way. I'll leave you to those thoughts..." He turned, before Katsuya stopped him. The teen had an look of cold determination on his face, looking at Yugi a moment before speaking.

 

"Yug'... You trash he- him, alrigh?" Before the teen could respond he continued, smirking. "An jus' for me... Make a comment on 'is 'estrogen' levels... I'm pretty sure that's the one that'll get a rise from 'm." He needed to pay attention to that science teacher though, he really did. He might as well mention it while it was on his mind however.

 

His friend blinked, raising an eyebrow before nodding regardless of understanding or not. "Alright," he decided. "I'll see you later, Jonouchi."

 

With that, he left, Mokuba staring after him before turning up to Katsuya. "Y-You... You too... Even though I told you... Even though you knew I was going to..." He shook, face screwed up in confusion as he cried. "I don't get it! Why! Why did you do that!"

 

The blond shrugged, smiling as he ruffled the kid's hair. "Cause you're a good kid, an' even though you did some extreme shit, yah didn't really know any better..." And if he did, he knew not to do that ever again. Or else. Katsuya sighed, letting the boy wipe his face on his sleeve before continuing. "You were scared righ'? An' yah didn' know who to hate." His voice was soft, knowing- a tone that he'd never used before, save back in 'Death-T 3'. "Somethin' tells me that, if I never met Yug', and I had the kind of access you did, I'd have done a lot of the same things as you too! Hell," he added with a harsh laugh, "I pretty much _did_ do tha' already!" Save the amusement park of horrors thing. All that aside though...

 

Mokuba looked up at him in disbelief, before turning away with a bit lip. "But... I tried to kill him..."

 

"But ya didn', right? An' yah won't do it again, not when y' really know what those words mean now..." At those words, Mokuba fell silent. How could he be so forgiving? How could he even say those things after all that had happened? "'Sides," Katsuya said with a soft smirk. "We live in the same house, it'd be pretty bad if I never forgave yah... You're like th' brother I never had right now, yah know? Plus..." He grinned. "Someone's gonna have tah knock some sense intah yer so-called 'brother' when Yug's done with 'm." A lot of sense. Perhaps with a right hook to the face, if he dared it- it wasn't as though Kaiba herself didn't know how to punch back after all.

 

The boy stared, unsure of what to say. Should he laugh..? Should he cry..? A piece of paper caught his eye, and with a jolt, he realized he'd dropped the picture he carried around since his sister's 'extra lessons'. "Oh..." Katsuya looked at the image, blinking at the scene of Mokuba and his older sister playing chess at the orphanage. An honest, innocent smile was on the girl's face. One that betrayed any actions that she'd done that day, any resentment she'd developed. It... It couldn't be Kaiba though, right?

 

"Is that..."

 

He nodded, looking over as Yugi entered the elevator and disappeared behind the doors. "K..Katsuya," he said, the teen jumping slightly as the boy used his first name. "Do you think... Yugi can..." He swallowed, still shivering from the events inside the box. "Even though the last time we played, he..."

 

Locked the kid in a CapMon capsule? Well... The blond nodded, standing up as he helped Mokuba to do the same. "Definitely," he said, leaving the unasked question answered in the same way. "If any one can," he continued with a determined gaze. "He will." As they came to this conclusion, Katsuya pulled out a phone, one of the guards he'd left behind suddenly checking himself over with shock.

 

"What the," he said from across the pair. "My phone's gone!" Yeah, and so was their security pass.

 

Take that. Katsuya began dialing the hospital, pausing a moment to look down at Mokuba. "Listen... Anzu an' I are gonna watch Yugi, make sure he does alright... But..."

 

The boy blinked, eyes widening as he realized what Katsuya was about to ask. "Death-T 3..." He nodded, frowning lightly before answering the silent question. "He's fine; the blocks stop falling after the door is sealed off. I'll go get him, understand?" Taking the nod from the teen as a 'yes', he fled, disappearing into the very elevator he'd entered the room in.

 

He'd say it again, the kid had balls. A few seconds after his own sister tried killing/maiming him, and he was already working at fixing things. Now then, he thought as one of the guards came over to pull he and Anzu up to Death-T 5. To find out how Yugi's grandpa was doing... "Hanasaki," he said as the phone picked up, the young friend of Yugi's answering the hospital phone. "Any change?"

 

* * *

 

No matter how he looked at it from the crowds at the fifth level, the boy's answer from the other end had been anything but good. Katsuya clicked the phone off in agitation, roughly handing it back to the guard he'd taken it from. This was not good... Not good at all. Anzu looked at Katsuya worriedly.

 

"How is he," she asked, still holding Tristan's now snoring baby nephew. "Will he... Will he be alright..?" No. No he wouldn't. His surgery was going to be hell, and so far the man showed no signs of improving. He shook his head, frowning. Better not give out those specifics though.

 

"I don't know," he lied, head bowed. "I tried Honda's cell too, but there's no answer... So I'll have to hope that Mokuba was right about the blocks..." Being with Johji had explained the lack of answer while they had been in the crowds prior Death-T as a whole. But now? As Anzu looked at him in confusion, he growled. "Damn it... We can't do anything more than watch Yugi's fight for now..."

 

The woman nodded, turning as the elevator doors opened and they stepped out to a space just behind the crowd. "Right..." Quick to accept that. Granted, there were guns against their backs again so really that was understandable. Maybe he should have asked Mokuba to do something about that before the kid left- but Honda took priority.

 

Shouts filled the stadium, Katsuya watching as Kaiba and Yugi both walked into what appeared to be a domed arena. And a few seconds later, as the crowd went truly wild...

 

The final match had begun.

 


	11. Chapter 9 | Cards with Teeth

Vengeance.

 

As Seto walked out of the elevator doors and onto the bridge leading to the dome in the center of the room, it was the only thought on her mind. How incredibly sweet it would be when she dosed Yugi with the same punishment he'd given her all those months ago, she thought to herself with a cold smile. How very, very sweet.

 

Standing on the bridge the woman watched as Yugi began to come forwards from his own side."Welcome," she started, smirking as the teen looked to her with a red-faced glare. "To the final stage of Death-T."

 

"Kaiba," the boy hissed, fists clenched tightly as they entered the dome. They would sit close, directly across from the other for this. Though the table itself seemed standard, the room would still be able to pick up on the images and spells played. Taking their places she blinked as an odd, possibly confused look came over his face. "For some reason," the teen began, eyes still narrowed with rage, "Jonouchi asked me to relay a message to you."

 

The woman smirked, before pulling out her deck. "Really now," she said, shuffling the cards before humouring her rival. "And what did your 'pet' tell you then?" She'd consider it a 'last few words' before he died.

 

Yugi's expression of loathing increased, before he continued. "I believe he asked me to comment on your apparently high level of estrogen... If that means anything to you." Apparently it did, though Seto hid it amazingly well. Regardless of the fact that Yugi seemed to have missed the meaning completely, this did nothing to improve her mood.

 

"Well," she replied through grit teeth. So the mutt had fangs did he? She would deal with him later, she supposed. After all, there were bigger fish to fry for the moment. "Talking is pointless. Let's get on with deciding our fates." Rather, deciding how badly to inflict his. She slammed her deck on the table, continuing. "Show me your cards, Yugi!"

 

"Gladly, Kaiba!" He as well placed his cards on the table, before frowning as Kaiba switched them. Looking at the confused expression on Yugi's face, she explained.

 

"Before the game," she told him, shuffling the deck and passing it back, "We shuffle and cut each other's decks. That way things are... Fair," she said with a smirk, watching as Yugi did the same with her own deck and passed it back. It wasn't as if she wanted any of the useless cards in his deck anyways. She had to hand it to the kid though, for crawling this far. Past trap after trap after trap, he'd managed to somehow make it with even his so-called posse intact. ' _But now,_ ' she thought with a cold smile that refused to fade, ' _You've hit a dead end. Because this, Yugi... Is where you die._ ' After all; she had the strongest monsters, the Blue Eyes White Dragons in her deck. And no card in the world could even hope to defeat them! So let him come with anything... "Let the duel begin," she said with a smirk.

 

As Yugi nodded, they drew their cards. 2000 life points each, 40 cards per deck. There was no way she would lose this time. No way whatsoever. "Fortress Guardian," Yugi stated as he summoned a card. Not showing any hesitancy whatsoever as the monster fogged into existence, he pointed it forwards. "Attack!" The woman nodded, before summoning her own card. It wasn't as powerful of course, but it was more than enough to take the brunt of the damage for her.

 

"I'll accept that challenge," she stated before placing the card. "I'll play 'Cyclops'!" The dragon attacked, crushing the cyclops as it screamed out of existence. Her life points dropped by 200 thanks to the difference in attack power, but no matter, she thought as Yugi crossed his arms. After all, give it another draw or so... And this match would be hers. "Hmp," she said with a slight snort. "It didn't even itch..." Yes, she thought, drawing a card. He won the first 'battle', but she still had her blue-eyes after all. And once she drew those cards, it would all be over. As Yugi stared at her from across the table, she continued to smirk. He was visibly waiting, breath baited as she drew her card. Would it be the dragon, she imagined him thinking. Was he dead already? Hnhnhnhn... "Yugi... Every time I draw a card," she observed with a cold grin, "I can hear your heart _race_..."

 

Seto watched as the teen visibly flinched, likely more from the statement itself rather than the drawing of the actual card. "Because when I pull the Blue Eyes White Dragon from my deck, you're as good as dead..." She played a card, snorting. "But lucky for you, the card I drew was Degenerating Worm Beast... Or is it unlucky?," Seto continued with a chuckle. "After all," she said as she sent the monster into battle with Yugi's dragon, "It beats your Fortress Guardian in level and matches it in attack! Now, fight!"

 

Yugi frowned, his dragon coming to the defense. "With pleasure," he called, before continuing. "While your Worm Beast is more powerful, my own monster has a special ability!" Of course it did; it seemed to be his specialty, pulling 'abilities' out of a hat. She scoffed, continuing nonetheless.

 

"Worm Beast attacks with Poison Spray, a venom attack that will melt the very flesh of an enemy's body!" And with the pain tied to each player in this room of hologram technology, she couldn't wait to see the results.

 

Instead however the boy smirked. "Fortress Guardian uses its special ability, 'Aviation'! Giving it a 35% chance of dodging the attack!" Much to Kaiba's displeasure, the dragon did just that, causing Yugi's smirk to grow as she growled. 35% and it succeeded. _Honestly!_ "Success... And now, the dragon attacks!" A small explosion occurred, the worm beast disintegrating as her points remained where they were.

 

"Hm..." Thanks to the identical levels of attack, she didn't lose any life points- so this was alright for now. "I'm not about to end my turn without a monster on the field," she said with a condescending tone. Hn.... Which one to play however? Skimming her hand she chose quickly. This one had a fairly high defense, he would work. "I'll place this card face down in defence," she began, watching as 'Sagi the Dark Clown' appeared for her temporary 'wall'. "And end my turn..." Thanks to the rules of play, Yugi wouldn't be able to tell who it was; even that small fact would likely cause her opponent to freeze slightly.

 

Yugi frowned for a moment, drawing a card before nodding. "Hn... In that case, I'll lay this monster in defence as well, ending my own turn."

 

"Hmp," she muttered with a grin. "Putting up meat shields for when Blue Eyes appears..." The woman chuckled darkly, before continuing. "But it's no use. Even without them, I can still defeat you easily. I'll show you!" Now that she had this card in her hand, she could switch back to the offensive again! She moved her clown, smirking. "Sagi the Dark Clown moves into attack mode," she began, watching as Yugi merely stared in silence. "Of course," she continued, "Right now its attack points are too low. So I'll play this card, 'Dark Energy'," she said with a grin, "And triple it's attack points!" She laughed darkly as Yugi's expression became one of shock and possible rage, Sagi's attack increasing to 400 points more than his own dragon. "Now then Sagi, attack the Fortress Guardian with Dark Glide!"

 

The dragon roared as a wave of black energy hit him, Yugi's life points dropping to 1600. She continued chuckling, leaning back in her chair as she put herself back in the lead. "Your dragon is history... Such is the power of Sagi and his 'Dark Energy." And even that was nothing in comparison to her dragon's attacks. Yugi drew a card, visibly scowling at the result. Good, she thought as she studied the teen's expression. This was getting closer and closer to a quick win...

 

"I'll play a monster in defense mode," he finally said with a frown, "And wait for your attack!"

 

She laughed coldly, grinning in response. "And I'll simply crush them one-by-one!" The crowd cheered as Seto struck down the first of Yugi's defensive monsters, bringing the teen's lifepoint count down another 200 points thanks to its negative effect. Defence, defence defence... And eventually, he'd have no where to run! "Hn hn hn... Feeling scared yet?" she asked with a smirk. She could practically see the boy's excuses for 'friends', calling him now as they watched from the edge of their seats. Watching as their pathetic 'trump card' failed them! "Yugi, Yugi, Yugi," she 'sighed', watching as Sagi destroyed yet another defence position monster. "I'm disappointed in you! I might not even get to use my Blue Eyes in this duel!" The teen responded with silence, so she continued with a harsh laugh. "And to top that off, you're using the same deck that half-dead old man left behind!" Her grin grew as Yugi's scowl deepened, and she continued. "I can almost hear the cards now, gasping and trying not to die!"

 

"Kaiba," the boy said, eliciting a blank look from the woman. "Do you believe in your cards?" he continued, causing her to freeze slightly in shock.

 

She frowned, narrowing her eyes. " _Excuse me_..?" Did he really just ask her something like that? Something that stupid and childish? Honestly, Yugi was short, but she at least expected someone her age to act it! ...Though certain mongrels had certainly proved her wrong.

 

Yugi drew a card from his deck, still talking. "Because I believe in these! And I play the Dark Knight Gaia!" She reeled back slightly in shock, watching as Yugi summoned the strongest 'Knight Class' card in the deck. Shit. With 2300 attack power, this card could easily slash through her clown! Damn it! "Attack the Dark Clown, Gaia! With Spiral Shaver!" The knight charged, leaving Sagi comically cleaved into pieces as its owner nodded. "Destroyed!"

 

Really, he didn't say? As if she didn't know that already! Kaiba's points dropped to 1300 hundred, the crowd roaring yet again. "Hmp," she grumbled as she regained her cold, blank stare. "A trump card..." Not a bad one either, for a runt at least.

 

He sighed. "You still don't get it," he said as he shook his head. "And you likely won't, until the very end..."

 

The woman scoffed as it came to her turn. Pathetic. "Please, don't start speaking as though you've won... The end to this match was decided long ago!" By her. She drew a card, looking at it before grinning wickedly. "How convenient... I drew the Blue Eyes White Dragon!" She summoned the card, relishing in Yugi's shocked expression as the shimmering beast appeared at her side. "It seems your trump card was worth nothing in the end," she said with a laugh. As the crowd around cheered at the card's summoning, she pointed it forwards. "Blue Eyes attacks! With Burst Destruction Beam!"

 

A shock-wave emitted through the dome, Gaia giving a harsh cry as the dragon's blast easily disintegrated him. A wind of sorts even resulted from the strike, blowing back a few strands of Yugi's hair and threatening to bring a few cards off the table. She laughed madly, feeling the battle draw still closer to her goal of vengeance. "And to think," she said as she laughed, Yugi's expression becoming more and more horrified as the teen's points plummeted to 700. "I still have two more Blue Eyes White Dragons in my deck! You're already dead!"

 

Losers died. A harsh lesson, but one she'd learned very quickly all those months ago. She'd held out to the point where her entire being was an act, a ploy to keep everyone eating out of her hand as the company traveled in whatever direction she wished. She was a _winner_. She would always be a winner. And she was not letting some midget with starfish hair change that!

 

...Because her life depended on it.

 

"Now then," she said with a smirk. "Draw a card Yugi... After all, Blue Eyes needs another monster to kick around..!" Seto watched as the teen drew a card, playing the 'Imp' in defence mode with a scowl. "Hnhnhnhn... Attack!" The dragon did as commanded, a grin playing on its owner's face as Yugi flinched. "A crushing death, an honourable death," she sighed, with the grin fading into a smirk. "An explosive death... Really Yugi, you're disappointing me!" As her dragon returned to her side, she crossed her arms and leaned back. "If you keep summoning defence position monsters, I can't get to your lifepoints..." Her eyes narrowed, and she continued. "Of course... Either way, you won't be able to hold out very long, Yugi..." Kaiba watched as Yugi scowled, an almost sadistic smile playing on her face. "Now then, summon another monster! After all, it doesn't matter which one!"

 

"Rgg..." Her smirk grew as the boy grumbled, before summoning still another defence position monster. Of course. After all, with defence, he wouldn't take damage. Kaiba drew another card, smirking.

 

"And now, attack-! Or perhaps not..." Her eyes narrowed with sick amusement, adding the card to her hand. "I don't think I'll attack just yet... Instead, why don't you summon another pathetic monster, so that my Blue Eyes has a few more toys to play with..." Vengeance was hers, she told herself as Yugi's eyes widened with shock. He knew full well what would happen when she summoned her second Blue Eyes after all. He couldn't summon more than one monster each turn, and two to one was an obvious match up. And speaking of Blue Eyes... She grinned. "And would you look at this... The Goddess of Victory is smiling down on me today..." The look of dismay on her opponents face was absolutely beautiful, she thought to herself. Simply _beautiful._ "I summon Blue Eyes!" Seto laughed, crossing her arms as she rubbed the sting of upcoming defeat further into Yugi's being. "And on my next turn, they'll both attack..."

 

' _I win'_ , she thought to herself. After all of this, she would finally be able to go home and have a full night's sleep, knowing that her opponent was having the same nightmares she'd been plagued with since that fateful battle. She'd wake up the next morning and read a good book, and maybe even pull herself out of highschool. She was a CEO after all; what use was even slightly entertaining the image of a 'normal teenage life'? And yet across from her, something changed.

 

"I draw a card," Yugi said, voice filled with a somehow renewed burst of confidence. "And I play the magic card Swords of Revealing Light!" For the love of- The one card that would stall her!

 

"What?" She scowled, the swords appearing to trap her two blue-eyes. Seto's expression of cruel humour switched completely to one of seething rage, her eyes narrowing as she stared Yugi down. "You... To use such a cheap card..." The anger vanished however, and she replaced her cold smile before speaking."Well... All you're doing is delaying the inevitable I suppose..." Her smile grew into a smirk, expression darkening as Yugi frowned. "The Blue Eyes White Dragons will be released in three turns after all, and what can you possibly do in that amount of time?"

 

Just three turns. Nothing more than that, only three turns. Nothing would happen. Nothing. This game was still hers.

 

Watching her opponent scowl at the statement, she drew another card with a blank expression. "Hn... I play this monster in attack position... But the Blue Eyes will still be the ones to destroy you," Kaiba stated with a small smirk. "Go ahead and envision the finale... You have three turns after all." The smile darkened as it grew, her eyes narrowing until they were essentially slits. "Draw your cards... They'll be your last." Yugi fell silent as she said this, staring at his deck for what seemed like ages. The crowd screamed for action, Seto as well becoming fairly impatient. "Yugi," she shouted, not caring if her rival jumped or simply continued with his move. "I'm in no mood for delay! Now draw a card!" The silence persisted, and as her fists tightened around her crossed arms she growled. "You've had more than enough time to beg for your life..! Draw a card!"

 

The teen snapped to attention, eyes narrowed as he did as requested. "Of course," he said, before looking at his hand with a smile. Odd... Her own smile vanished slightly, pondering the sudden change of her opponent's heart. She had him backed completely into a corner, there was no changing that. So why was he suddenly acting as though there was a way to win, when all he'd done was create a stall? Why...

 

"My turn," she muttered, drawing a card before mentally shrugging. "Well," Kaiba said as she placed the card 'Judge Man' on the field. "To pass the time, I think I'll play this monster to destroy your defences..." Even with her dragons trapped, she could still corner her prey after all. And with an attack of 2200, it would easily destroy anything he summoned up for defence. Not to mention, she added mentally, his current ones. "Heh..."

 

"I summon the Dark Magician," her opponent countered with a glare, the sorcerer appearing to the teen's side. Tch... Useless, useless struggling... "Attack the Judge Man, with Black Magic!" Her points dropped to 1000, and she snorted as the boy continued to speak. "Until the very end Kaiba," he said clearly, "I won't give up. No matter how grim it looks... I know that there's a way to beat you!"

 

Really? He could keep thinking that, she decided. It would make the end result so much more worth the wait. She scoffed, mentally dreaming of how wonderful it would be when she didn't have to hear that voice shouting in her head again. "Ah yes... Of course," she said with a sarcastic smile. "But at last, it's the final turn, and your chances have disappeared!" Kaiba drew a card, before a manic grin appeared on her face once more. "The final card... The third Blue Eyes White Dragon! Now," she cried, holding

back her laughter as Yugi froze. "Attack the Dark Magician!" In the resulting blast, her opponent shook slightly- his points dropping to a meager 200. "Hahahahaha!" So close, she was _so close_ now... "Now, draw your last card Yugi... Because regardless of what it is, you're still going to die!" The crowd continued to cheer, the swords of light vanishing from around her two other dragons. "And now that your cheap little magic card is gone, my dragons are free to attack next turn... I can't wait!"

 

She couldn't help but let out another fit of laughter, Yugi merely glaring back at her as he took his turn. Let him hope, she thought, Gozaburo's suicidal leap months before coming to mind as she grinned menacingly. No matter what, in the end she won... No matter what. "Hurry up and draw Yugi," she sneered lowly. "You can't stall the inevitable forever!" No matter what he drew, she would destroy it. No matter what it was! What a relief she feel once it was finally over with... The knowledge of upcoming death would finally overtake her opponent and it would all be over.

 

And she would stand at the top again. She smirked as the teen's face twisted with fear, only for the expression to drop. Yugi's face... It had suddenly calmed, and an almost peaceful smile had replaced it. What was this? A pathetic cover for his fear, a still clinging hope that refused to die? What was it? The boy continued to smile, shaking his head. "You're wrong, Kaiba," he said as he placed the card in his hand. "I've found my hope." What was this..? Why did she feel cold again, like she had the last time, when he'd destroyed her monsters and won the duel they'd played. What was this feeling... This endless feeling of dread she was getting again..? "I drew... Exodia, the Sealed One!"

 

Her already faded smirk vanished instantly. Impossible. Impossible, impossible, _impossible_ , there was no way this brat had managed Exodia, no way he'd bothered keeping the normally useless cards in his hand this long! And yet... And yet..! "Now," Yugi said with a calm and commanding grin. "I join all five cards!" Seto's eyes widened with shock as the hologram of a pentacle appeared, Exodia's limbs and head exiting each point with an eerie grin. No... No no _no_ , it wasn't possible to summon Exodia, it wasn't!

 

"You..." She couldn't speak, she couldn't move... Exodia's effect was unstoppable after all, even by her now hissing Blue Eyes White Dragons. "You... You..."

 

The monster chuckled darkly, flexing his muscles as he was freed from his chains by the summoning. And across from her, Yugi merely stared down with narrowed eyes. "Attack," he called out, Exodia gladly following the orders. "Raging Hellfire; Exode Flame!"

 

Exodia's attack was infinite. It was impossible to avoid his attack- as the dome became engulfed with light, Kaiba almost screamed at the loss of her dragons, her life points, at the loss of _everything-_

 

' _This is what happens to people who lose Seto!_ ' Gozaburo was laughing in her mind, and all she could do was stare at Yugi with wide eyes as the voice grated against her ears and her thoughts. ' _Remember that! REMEMBER THAT!_ ' "You... You..." ' _Losers die..._ ' "My Blue Eyes... Annihilated..." _'LOSERS DIE!'_

 

And he dared, even now, to give him a speech? Dared to look across the table and bring some stupid, moronically emotional meaning from this match? "Of course," Yugi began, Kaiba staring at him with stunned and hate filled eyes. "The Blue Eyes could easily destroy one lone piece of Exodia... However," he continued, "Even though each individual part is weak, when united, they form an invincible whole!"

 

"You... You can't..." It was impossible. It would take a miracle... Yet it had happened. Beyond anything it happened and now... Now! Her eyes continued to widen with horror as she realized just what was coming next, sweat already gathering across her neck as the blood drained from her face.

 

Now... Now came 'death'.

 

Yugi's frown remained set, and as he stood from his seat the boy narrowed his eyes. "I win Kaiba..." He continued to scowl, before placing his cards on the table and looking to his opponent's own end of it. "And now, as the rules state... The loser must face a penalty game!" No. No no _no no no_ she screamed in her mind, god damn it why! _WHY_! "An instant of atonement Kaiba," the teen snarled, pointing toward the woman. "PENALTY GAME! _MIND CRUSH_!"

 

* * *

 

That was all she heard before going limp and falling into darkness. All she saw, as she felt herself fragment into pieces, collapsing in on herself perhaps. She couldn't move, she couldn't scream, she couldn't feel... All she could see...

 

...

 

......All she could see was the dark. Seto looked around, frowning as her vision cleared to the void around her. Where was this? What was going on? She couldn't remember anything, nothing at all in fact. Nothing except...

 

The girl looked herself over, her form the same that she'd held years ago at an orphanage divided clean in two among the assigned sexes. A simple t-shirt, pants... Her hair was cut short, hanging loosely around her eyes in the same cut she would one day grow familiar with. "Where..?"

 

There was no answer.

 

"...Who..?"

 

Still, no answer. Just emptiness... She wandered the darkness, clutching her arms for warmth. It felt as though she'd been trapped somewhere before, somewhere dark but...

 

The girl frowned. Well, she was still stuck wasn't she? It was still dark in this place now, there was no one here, and although she didn't know what had happened (Or who she was for that matter; that was never good), she had a feeling that his meant she was still 'stuck'. The girl stumbled slightly as she tripped over something metal.

 

- _Clink_.-

 

Seto turned to look down, blinking. What was that? The girl knelt down, reaching out to

grab what looked to be a gold coloured block of sorts. "...A puzzle piece..."

 

- _Clink. Clink._ -

 

She turned, blinking as a pile of pieces appeared before her eyes. A puzzle... Seto walked over, picking up another piece and feeling it over before putting it back in the pile. These pieces... They felt important somehow, life-changing even. The girl stared at the puzzle in silence, before coming to a single conclusion. After all she supposed, digging through to try and put the pile together. There was nothing else to do here... So she might as well fix this mess of a heart that she apparently had.

 


	12. Chapter 10 | Friends and Family First

"YEAH!" As the crowd roared at the shock of Kaiba losing, Katsuya grinned. "Good going Yugi!"

 

Idly, he wondered what Yugi had done to the CEO; she wasn't moving, at all. In fact if he wasn't so worried about the fact that Kaiba's 'guards' were refusing to move their guns away now (something about pick-pocketing, but he assumed it was mostly bias), he'd be pretty creeped out. If he thought about how this had probably happened before however, and that it was Kaiba...

 

Well, she'd recover in the end of course. But there was something about the way she slumped that continued to send shivers down his spine. "...Tch..." He and the others at least, had managed to get out of that situation with this result- but they still needed to actually leave the building. How the hell were they going to convince these morons to drop their weapons when their boss wasn't moving?

 

(...Although Kaiba moving around probably wouldn't help matters anyways, given her general treatment so far. Damn it.)

 

He couldn't do anything while Anzu was held hostage as well, and there was no way he could take them both on his...

 

Own...

 

Katsuya frowned as an odd feeling came over him, the blond slowly turning his head backwards as the sound of cracking knuckles met his ears. A loud crack sounded as the first guard went down, a fist having pounded against the back of his skull. "Yo," the attacker said with a smirk.

 

It couldn't be... And yet, there he was! "Honda," he shouted, ignoring the guard's turning around as he smacked him towards his friend. "Yah made it!" He was alive!

 

The teen snorted, before socking the next guard in the face. "Well no shit! What, you thought I'd get squashed by some blocks?"

 

Katsuya shrugged. "Eh, maybe!" Might as well have some fun now that things were relatively over right? It wasn't like he was in danger any more!

 

"Why you-!" Anzu laughed at the exchange, the pair throwing one last punch at the guard with a grin. "What's that supposed to mean? Maybe _you_ should have been dead!"

 

"Heh," Katsuya snorted back with a grin. "We can't die yet! There's too many guys we haven't beaten!"

 

Honda nodded at the comeback, grinning as well. "I hear you on that much at least!"

 

Alright, Katsuya observed as the pair dusted their hands off. Both guys down, Yugi walking back from the arena, so far things looked good! Should someone have called an ambulance for Kaiba? Eh, someone probably did already so-

 

"You need more practice, newbie."

 

A voice from behind cut his mood short, Honda's blow to the guard's neck apparently not being enough to take him out. "Tch!" A gun barrel was pressed even more firmly against his back, jacket held tight in the man's grip. Well wasn't that just _spectacular?_

 

"Don't move," the guard said with a snarl. "Or the kid dies!" Hey since when was he a 'kid'?

He scowled, unable to really say much on the matter. It really really figured that after all of this, he'd still get stuck with this kind of crap.

 

Another voice entered the conversation however, and he brightened at the sound. "That's enough," Mokuba barked, arms held firmly at his side. "Let him go!" The guard protested, but the boy merely levelled a stern and perhaps even neutral gaze at him. "The game is over," he stated with a frown. "Leave."

 

YES! Saved! For a moment, the guard stood there. Most likely, he was weighing the chances of keeping his job should he shoot the blond and say 'sorry'. However as Katsuya shoved him off with a loud 'outta my way!', he got the picture and moved aside. "Hey," Honda asked, looking at Mokuba. "Is that kid Kaiba's..." The question was left unfinished, but it was fairly obvious what the question was.

 

Katsuya nodded. "Yea, he- his little brother, same guy who hired me!" He smirked, Mokuba crossing his arms and turning away under Honda's stare. Either he was a little sore about being outed as the 'bad-guy's' sibling, or he was just playing tough in the face of attention.

 

"This kid opened the exit for me but..." He frowned. "You're Kaiba's kid brother? Why the hell..."

 

In reply to the next unspoken question, Mokuba snorted. "Keh! I was just paying off my debt to Yugi... That's all." Ok. Playing it tough it was.

 

Not a problem then. The boy turned as that same teen appeared, blinking over the gathered crowd. Oh, speak of the devil- He was back! The blond grinned, as did most of the others. "Yugi!" He laughed as his friend came forward, a confident smile playing on his face. "Yah did great man!"

 

Congratulations of varying sorts floated around, Yugi of course brightening considerably when he spotted Honda. "Hey," the teen said as he turned to Katsuya with a raised brow, "Does Yugi seem... Different to you?" Well...

 

About that. He'd explain later he decided as he laughed. "Yugi is Yugi, right?" And nothing else!

 

(Though the differences were apparent even now...)

 

As Honda shrugged it off, they turned- Yugi was speaking now... And somehow when Yugi spoke, you couldn't help but listen. "Everyone," he said calmly, looking up at them with intense gratitude. "You came to my rescue back there... Thank you." Rescue? If cheering from the sidelines was rescuing, then hey, whatever worked!

 

He grinned, nodding in response to that. "Heh... No prob! It's what we're here for right?" The blond watched from the corner of his eye as even Mokuba smiled at the group, before turning to leave the friends with their excitement. Anzu however, had spotted him as well.

 

"Mokuba-kun," she said hesitantly, the boy turning to look at her oddly. "Can you tell us... Why did Kaiba-kun want revenge this badly?" If she had to ask...

 

As the boy looked away for a moment, Katsuya swallowed. "This... This goes before th' day Tanaka mentioned... Doesn' it..." As the other three looked at him in confusion, Mokuba nodded. So... Before the 'great rejection'? Yikes. That... That was a fairly lengthy grudge among siblings. Not to mention a

fairly interesting amount of time to develop severe gaming obsessions.

 

Still facing away, Mokuba began to speak. No secrets other than what was important... Not anymore. "It all started that day... He was playing chess, and-" His breath hitched, hesitating, but he nonetheless continued. "...When Seto-niisama was 10, and I was 5, it was just the two of us. We had no parents." Katsuya frowned lightly as the familiar story began, with more details than Mokuba had ever given him before. "Our mother died when I was born," he said quietly, "And dad died in an accident when I was three..." The truck accident. Right. Mokuba bit his lip, pressing onward. "And while our relatives ate up our inheritance, Seto-niisama and I were put into an orphanage!"

 

He quivered with anger for a moment, before sighing. ' _Don't cry_ ', his sister had said that day. Even though their relatives had been so lazy that they'd essentially pawned off their son's hand-me-downs to her and wordlessly added that if she didn't keep the truth hidden after that insane request she'd made, it would be Mokuba's head. That request, that one request, all just to make sure no one hurt him at any time while there...

 

' _Don't cry, Mokuba! I'll make sure that someday, we have a good life!_ ' Because he'd been scared...

 

Just because he'd been scared, she threw away everything to make sure nothing happened when the 'monsters under the bed' came. And if she'd just forced him to face up to those childish fears he'd had at such a young age, none of this would have happened. They were really trapped in that place, weren't they? He didn't really feel it... But her nee-sama did. After convincing her aunt to commit what was essentially a serious identity related crime by stating that the girl was 'male' instead, it was all she could do. The fact that she'd managed it that far was frightening enough...

 

But even afterwards, she never revealed herself, dreading the prospect of a check up from the doctor giving her away, dreading the idea of being caught while changing, dreading everything around no matter the time of day. Maybe that was why she'd fought for adoption. And why after the 'vocal training', and after the strict command to never let it falter...

 

' _Don't let your guard down_ ,' she'd said long before it all. ' _If you show them weakness, it's all over!_ ' Were those words for him, he wondered now?

 

Or for her..?

 

While his thoughts ran rampant, it had barely been half a second since he'd last opened his mouth. And so, he continued on. "Even so, regardless of what happened, I still liked living at the orphanage!" The others blinked with minute confusion as the boy choked, eyes screwed shut as the deeply hidden story was retold. "Seto-niisama taught me to play chess there. We spent all our days playing it..." Behind him, Katsuya's eyes widened slightly, as a few casual points clicked into place. Mokuba's favorite game was 'CapMon'- Capsule Monster CHESS, a children's version of an adult's game. His expression softened as the boy continued to speak, still shaking slightly. "But that day... That day was the last time I ever saw Seto-niisama smile..." Even back then..?

 

The blond swallowed, keeping silent nonetheless as he listened.

 

"That day, a man named Kaiba Gozaburo came to the orphanage to adopt a son." So he was told, at least. He remembered him clearly from that day, the middle aged man dressed in a far too expensive suit and smoking equally high priced cigars. They'd looked from afar, and then his sister had told him to wait at the table; she had an idea. An incredible idea, one that would not only get them out of that place but make all of their dreams a reality! "He was the President of Kaiba Corporation, and a World Chess champion. Seto-niisama approached him just before he left, and they made a bet..." He could hear Gozaburo's harsh laugh as Seto made the offer even now, the man only taking it after his sister claimed he was too afraid to play against a 'little boy'. "If nii-sama beat Gozaburo in a game of chess, he had said... Then Gozaburo had to adopt us both." ' _Interesting child,_ ' Gozaburo had chuckled. Interesting, he'd said, even after he was defeated. Yet in the end... "My brother won." he said bluntly.

 

And the entire game was a set up, Katsuya added mentally. The tone said that much, though how that got by Gozaburo was the real question. Nonetheless this was Mokuba's story to tell; he could hide the details if he wanted.

 

"Our surname was changed to 'Kaiba'... And our new life was nothing like we had ever even dreamed of! But that man... That man did something we never expected..." Never in a million years had they expected it, and when he said 'nothing like they had dreamed', it did not necessarily mean good. Not at all. "He drove Seto-niisama into session upon session of languages, sociology, tactics, management..." He swallowed, shaking his head as he remembered the sole break that his sister ever really got, that one class in English, that one hour he was allowed to see her... And the marks on her back from the switch... The collar that left rough scratches from the fabric on her throat... "Day after day after day... Each one was like constant torture... And then, using what he learned, six years later..."

 

What Gozaburo didn't realize, Mokuba thought as he bit his lip, was that he was turning his successor into his greatest possible enemy. That after he'd gone so far as to rip a part of Seto's body from her control, forcing her to comply simply because of fear... For all that Gozaburo moved from treating her as something to punish and beat, regardless of how he seemed to finally accept Seto as 'his', as an 'asset', she had made her decision.

 

"A meeting of the board of directors was called," the boy said numbly. "Nii-sama announced that he'd taken 51 percent of the company, making it his." A part that even he himself had played in, when Gozaburo had given him a small two percent to keep the tides from shifting. He didn't know the price of things back then. He just knew that his sister needed him... Even if it was the last time she ever did. After all with that, Gozaburo lost his company to the one he'd trained up to take it over.

 

That had to be a kick in the face, Katsuya thought with a frown. Having the company taken with the very tactics you'd taught. He couldn't feel sorry for him however. He instead clenched his fists, watching Mokuba relive one of his worst memories, and thinking upon the consequences it had had. That man... To think that one man alone could turn the person he'd seen actually _smile_ in a picture into...

 

Into someone who could put together all of _this_. "Niisama told me that before he jumped off the building, he gave him a final message. He said, ' _You've won this game'... 'And in every game, the loser's fate is unavoidable_ '..." Loss meant death. It was a lesson that Mokuba wished Gozaburo never had the time to teach. A lesson that he so badly wished had never been taught. "And then... Gozaburo jumped through the window..."

 

Katsuya watched as the boy stood there, shaking. Tears were now dropping to the ground, and ignoring the looks from the others, he went over to his side. "Hey..." Jesus... No wonder everything was so messed up. People dying over games, and companies, and all kinds of crap that kids shouldn't be dealing with... "Hey, 's all righ'..." The blond put a hand on Mokuba's shoulder, crouching down to get closer to eye-level with the boy. "Come on... 'S over... It'll be alrigh'."

 

The boy stood there, not saying anything as he was held even distantly. All he could see in his mind was that one day that changed everything. What would have happened? What would have happened if the game hadn't been set up? If they hadn't even bothered with the facade of masculinity? Would they still be together? Would they have been adopted by a real family, one where they could have lived happily and smiled every day, where the truth was already known?

 

"Mokuba," a voice called, and he shifted as Yugi came up behind the two. "Right now, Kaiba is somewhere in the dark, gathering the shattered pieces of his heart..." Ah... What? That's what he did now?

 

(Was that healthy?)

 

They looked up, both Katsuya and Mokuba looking over at Seto's frozen and unresponsive body. Her eyes were still held open in shock, glazed over with an eerie feeling of soullessness. They both stared,

listening as Yugi continued.

 

"Piece by piece," he said as he followed their gaze, "He will put his heart back together again. This time, he'll have to rely on himself to do it right." She better do it right, he couldn't help but think after that. If Kaiba came back worse...

 

"...Yugi," Mokuba said, the three looking out at the body. Momentarily, Katsuya didn't know if he should shudder or what- so instead he opted to pay attention to the conversation. "He'll come back right? He... He'll get better right?"

 

Yugi nodded. "Yes. Someday, when he's solved the puzzle... He'll wake up again."

 

The others stood there, before watching as the boy nodded. "Ok... Then, I'll wait! As long as it takes..."

 

He'd wait for her to wake up.

 

* * *

  
  


One of the guards came back with the phone Katsuya had used earlier; Hanasaki had called back, and while incredibly confused at who answered the guard had decided to relay the message passed to him in hopes of not getting on Mokuba's bad side. Yugi's grandfather...

 

Was fine. The operation he'd been in was a success, and as they left the building Yugi reverted to his normal self with a deep sigh. It created an interesting change- one that they had to explain to Honda more than a few times as they walked- but despite that, it also brought back a small sense of normalcy. Despite that, Katsuya felt a little torn for a moment as they exited the building.

 

Yeah, Mokuba and Seto both had tried to kill himself, his friends, and even one of the aforementioned siblings themselves, but at the same time...

 

That kid, Mokuba... Was really hurting. Really, really hurting, Katsuya thought to himself with a grimace. And as much as he tried to forget that part, standing outside with the others, cheering for the success of the surgery, the match... Through everything really, it still didn't help him when Yugi finally grabbed his attention.

 

"Jonouchi-kun..."

 

"Hn?" He turned, blinking. All this stuff going on, it was just too hard to think of anything straight. He looked down at his friend's usual wide-eyed stare of 'what's wrong', finding himself drifting into thought. It reminded him... From the way Yugi was acting, he seemed to remember everything from the battle with Kaiba. Though, he couldn't be sure without checking, so...

 

Yugi coughed, a look of confusion on his face. "Earlier... You told the other me to mention 'estrogen'... What's that again?"

 

Honda's eyes went wide as a look of stunned shock came over before being replaced with a grin. "You're kidding me..." He laughed, his nephew waking up with a scowl as the teen continued to howl. "Oh my god... You actually compared Kaiba's bastardized behaviour to PMS?"

 

Well... It was less about that and more taking a jab at something he knew would piss her off but...

 

From beside the teen Anzu growled, fists clenching. "Oh yeah. REAL mature, morons!" Honda continued to roar with laughter, Yugi looking as though he wasn't sure if he should laugh or not. "Yeah, because I would _SO_ hire a trio of assassins if you ticked me off! Let alone a mass murderer!"

 

"Awww calm down Anzu," Honda said between his laughs. "It's all in good fun! Not like we couldn't use a laugh right?" Hear hear!

 

She growled, shaking her head. "Pigs," she said, crossing her arms. "I hang out with pigs!" Anzu looked down at Yugi, who still looked like his face was caught in a mousetrap as he attempted not to laugh. "Oh come on, you aren't seriously..."

 

He finally let the laughs loose. "I... I'm sorry but... I can still remember the look on Kaiba's face when it was brought up!" Well, if he didn't think the guy remembered anything before..!

 

The laughter continued, before an ambulance pulled to the front of the building. The sirens killed the laughter pretty quickly. As Katsuya stared at the paramedics rushing into the building, Yugi tapped him on the shoulder. "Eh? Yug'..?"

 

Both he and the two others smiled, the shorter speaking first. "Well... You became friends with Mokuba right? And you're worried about Kaiba too..."

 

The others nodded. "Yeah," Honda said, hands in his pockets as he ignored his nephew's fussing. "I mean... I don't get how you can stand them after all of this, but anyone can tell that you're getting worked up about it!" At least they weren't insisting he break things off with the kid...

 

(That... That would probably just sign the kid's death certificate.)

 

"Yeah," Anzu added with a serious nod. "Go on, Jonouchi; we'll tell you about Yugi's grandfather in the morning. For now though," she said as people began to rush out of the building, "You should probably make sure that Mokuba-kun's alright as well."

 

Katsuya frowned lightly, looking at the three. "But... What about..." He looked at Yugi, who shook his head.

 

"We're fine," he said with a smile. "After all, even when we're not here, we're still together, right?" He held up the hand that Anzu had drawn on while they were waiting at Death-T 3, smiling.

 

Hah... The smile...

 

He stood there a moment, before doing the same. "Yeah..." Katsuya nodded, reassuring himself in the decision. "That's right..." The blond turned, nodding yet again to the others before he left. "Thanks guys! Oi, Mokuba!" As he ran towards the ambulance, the black haired boy jumped. "Mokuba.. Ah... Hey."

 

The boy blinked, looking past his part-time employee at Yugi and the others. "Weren't you going to go see if Yugi's grandpa..." He trailed off, looking fairly miserable about the entire situation before Katsuya shook his head. He should probably have expected that kind of response- it was partially his fault after all, or so he apparently believed.

 

"Old man's fine, no worries there... Got outta surgery great." As it was, he was in better condition than the one who orchestrated this entire event. He looked over at the ambulance, before turning back to the boy. "Nah... I jus' thought you'd need a friend righ' now..." Probably an older sibling too, but that would be short of a miracle. Mokuba looked up, silent, before turning to the ambulance to watch his older sister get carried inside.

 

"I..." He swallowed, before nodding. Best not to look a gift horse in the mouth- and Katsuya was right. "Thank you..."

 

He smiled. "No problem kid," the teen said as he ruffled Mokuba's hair. "Now come on... Somethin' tells me yah need to explain a few things t' them when we get there right?" The boy simply nodded, and after a few words, they were carried off alongside Seto's comatose form to the hospital.

 

Yeah. There would be... Lots of things to explain. As for when the teen would wake up, hopefully for the better... Who knew.

 

* * *

 

In the endless darkness, she didn't know much about what was happening. Idly she felt a shift in the temperature around her, but aside from that...

 

She knew nothing more than the darkness, and the pieces of gold before her.

 

Distantly when she picked up a piece of the puzzle, she could hear a voice...but she couldn't tell what it meant, or who it belonged to. Couldn't even tell where, or when it was. She held her first piece tight, frowning. "What does this one mean?" she wondered aloud, voice contrasting the one she used in more recent times considerably. Young and childish, suiting her current size and state.

 

Not at all like the commanding voice of 'Seto Kaiba' that she had taken in recent years; the voice that at this moment, Seto couldn't even recall using. As she held it, she heard sirens... a screech of tires, and a pleading voice.

 

"Who is it..?" Screams... Many screams... But for some reason, she still couldn't turn her attention away from the pleading and faded voice in the background. The voice that she couldn't even make out to begin with. The girl looked to the pile of pieces, feeling compelled to grab another of the others. It was in the middle of the pile; a piece that she hadn't seen until now. Grabbing at it however, she felt a warmth of sorts.

 

The sirens were still there. Yet even though they made her feel scared, and even cold, there were voices... Soft voices, thoughts even... Too soft to be spoken, even.

 

' _Nee-sama,_ ' she heard. ' _Neesama, I believe Yugi was right.._.' It was strange, this voice. Unlike the ones in the pieces, it seemed to come from around her.

 

Seto looked up, frowning. 'Nee-sama'... Meant sister, didn't it? Was she a sister? And Yugi? Who was Yugi?

 

' _Oi, Seto-chan..._ ' Her name wasn't... That wasn't her name, Seto thought with a scowl. She didn't actually know what her name was of course, but she had a feeling that wasn't it. It bugged her too much to be her name. ' _Seto-chan, you need to wake up, so you can yell at me for calling you this_.' The owner of this voice was kind of annoying she decided rather quickly. Yappy, like a small dog. She'd call this voice the 'Mutt' for now she decided. ' _Seto-chan,_ ' 'Mutt' continued, ' _Until you can hear me call you this, and until you can throw a punch at my face for this, I'm going to keep calling you this. Understand? Seto-chaaaaaaaannnn~_ ' It was oddly cheery, and she noted that there were no sirens when she heard the voice. In fact, the sounds from the piece she held first had vanished.

 

She picked up yet another piece, listening with a frown as the voice continued.

 

' _Seto-chan~ Se-To-Chaaaaaaann~~_ '

 

' _Stop calling my nee-sama 'chan'._ ' She had to agree with her 'brother' there.

 

"Hmp! Someone needs to teach this mutt to shut up!" She scowled, looking at the two pieces in her hands before fixing them together with a clack. "Ah..." A perfect fit. Yes, there were still many other pieces left but... She'd managed to put these two together just from that. Seto looked at the pile. It seemed endlessly large, a mountain of gold that almost threatened her presence there.

 

And yet, regardless of how many pieces were left, she still had to smile.

 


	13. Chapter 11 | Chase the Million!

Summer had finally come for real in Japan, rather than arriving as a heat wave in the middle of spring. Weather studios all over were still going on about that, in fact- winters were getting colder and summers were getting hotter, and it was all a little disturbing. As if the weather was just saying 'screw it! Hot is hot and cold is cold! I can't be bothered to find a happy medium!'

 

Regardless of the season, there were still classes to attend- at least for the moment. There were just two weeks before the summer holidays began, and to 'celebrate' that coming the Aptitude Test Rankings had been posted that very week.

 

And he had come in 392nd.

 

Out of 400.

 

And Mokuba wouldn't shut the hell up as he groaned, the boy instead relaying the story to a still comatose Kaiba. "Nyhhhh..." He grabbed his head, scowling. "Can Seto-chan even hear us! I mean, seriously?" Because if she could, that just made things worse in his opinion.

 

The hospital room was well guarded, what with its sole occupant being the billionaire President of KaibaCorp. Mokuba for the most part, had been dealing with the entire incident of both his sister's coma and the issues with the company fairly well, having temporarily taken the reigns of the company with the aid of Kaiba's current adviser Isono. Incredibly well actually, given how fast he'd done it. It almost made him wonder if Mokuba wasn't hiding anything, but really he was done with paranoia for now. For the time being, the hospital was likely the only break Mokuba was getting from the job outside of school; this was about as much time as they had to speak, even while living in the same house.

 

At least it was sound proofed, he thought calmly. And surveillance free, when it came to particular angles... That in mind Katsuya recalled, when the doctors had realized their patient was female it apparently took a fair amount of explaining to keep their mouths shut- not to mention cash, given certain glaring legalities and paper trails. Kaiba typically had a private doctor who knew all of this after all, and he had still handed over the papers with the notes for 'male sex' written on them.

 

Well... When one had money he supposed.

 

As Katsuya continued to grumble about his marks and the pointlessness of speaking to a coma-victim (Saying 'corpse' would be bad.), Mokuba shook his head. It hadn't been long since 'Death-T'. Only a week in fact, and it was fairly alarming that the school had only just given the go-ahead to ditch the jackets for uniform t-shirts. More alarming however was Mokuba's 'recovery' rate from the shock of his sister going under, though Katsuya had the nagging feeling that he had a hand in that for some reason.

 

"I already told you," he said from his sister's side with a frown. "Of course she can! People in a coma always recover faster it you treat them like they're awake after all!" Whatever worked for him really... The boy paused, before frowning. "And stop calling Nee-sama 'Seto-chan'... Otherwise, you'll get so much into the habit that I won't be able to keep you out of the hospital for more than an hour at best..."

 

He groaned, rubbing his head. "Nyhh... Whatever. I say that what I'm doin' is jus' proving you wrong on the hearin' thing but..." The blond smiled, looking at the siblings. "Whatever helps I guess... I mean, I'm just a moron righ'?" Hell, even Honda beat him out... He expected Yugi to do that, but Honda?

 

Mokuba blinked, before rolling his eyes. "If this is still about your test score..." It was really pathetic...

 

Really pathetic actually. Seriously, he knew that Katsuya didn't do well in school, but to think he was that bad? Maybe he should call up Tanaka or someone...

 

The blond scowled. "No! ... Yes..." He turned away, still frowning. Stupid, stupid school...

 

"H-Hey... They've still improved though right?" Katsuya raised an eyebrow at that, but nonetheless said nothing as the kid had a point. He _was_ getting a little better in school- quite likely because he wasn't holding 4 or 5 part-time jobs in an effort to pay the bills for his old man. Not to mention that an enforced attention for detail on the job helped with 'detail in the class', provided he paid attention to the lessons in the first place of course. Speaking of his dad...

 

The man was now currently stuck in jail due to tax fraud and attempted theft, after the amount of panic Katsuya had expended keeping Mokuba from having him thrown there in the first place. It really figured didn't it... "Yeah, well... At least I got t' play a game out of it..."

 

Mokuba blinked. "A game... What kind of game could you get out of exams?"

 

Katsuya grinned. "'Aptitude Test Bingo!' It was great, until Tsuroka-sensei started harpin' at us about our grades anyway. Lousy bastard..." His muttering suddenly turned into a laugh however, as he remembered the frantic plea the teacher had made to keep his baldness secret. That... That was gold...

 

Across from him Mokuba merely sighed and hung his head, deciding to let the blond live in his memories for a moment. While the boy was ready to do so, reality was not- there was a knock on the door at that moment, and Katsuya blinked. "Heh? Visitin' hours aren't over already are they?"

 

"No," the boy said as he shook his head, moving to answer the door. "Not for another half hour... Hang on." He opened the door, before returning with a letter from one of the company staff posted outside. "ZTV Broadcasting..?" Mokuba raised an eyebrow, looking over at Katsuya. "Katsuya," he said, having gotten used to calling the teen by his first name rather quickly. "It's for you."

 

He blinked. ZTV..? Wait...

 

No way! The teen grinned, jumping as he went over to take the envelope from Mokuba's shocked hands before opening it. "Yes... YES! This is GREAT!"

 

Mokuba shook his head, frowning as he watched. "Hey... Isn't ZTV that game show channel?" His friend appeared to ignore him, instead hopping around the room with shouts of excitement. "Katsuya, you... Do realize that those are normally scams right?" Still, Katsuya seemed to ignore him, and he tapped his side. "Hey! I'm serious about this!"

 

Again, Katsuya ignored him. "Man... I'll finally be able t' pay off those debts!"

 

He rolled his eyes. "Katsuya, you don't have to pay off your Dad's gambling debts... We fixed that remember?" Ah, yes, he'd paid those off the day he was hired now that he thought back.

 

Well regardless. The blond shook his head. "I don't care! I'll feel bad if I jus' let you handle everything in my life!" Crossing his arms and taking a seat in the chair as he read over the details in the letter, he continued. "I mean... Ever since that one day with the 'reward' and stuff, you've pretty much snapped a leash around my neck and butted int' everything I do! I mean, no offense kid," he said as Mokuba scowled at the 'leash' comment. "But I can fix my own problems. Besides," he added. "If I win... I have a shot at visiting my sister again..."

 

Oh yeah, didn't she live in like... Osaka, Mokuba thought blankly. Talk about getting as far away from their father as possible... "Hnn..." Well, now that he thought about it, it wouldn't hurt now that he'd gotten in. "Alright... But seriously, when did you even send that thing?" That 'thing' in question, was coloured in various neon colours and quite frankly had the risk of possibly blinding people.

 

Katsuya blinked, before looking at the ceiling in thought. "Now that I think about it... I hadn' even met you an' Seto-chan at the time..." Weird. That was like...

 

Three months and counting. Did it get lost in the mail maybe? As he pondered this and continued over the letter, he pointedly ignored Mokuba's exasperated cry of 'Don't call nee-sama that!'.

 

"Hey," he said idly, as they sat there in silence. "You wanna watch?"

 

The boy's amused smirk was enough of a response for him.

 

* * *

 

School the next day was fairly interesting. Mostly because after being questioned on his wider-than-normal grin (Given his poor grades from the day prior), he flashed the envelope for ZTV rather proudly.

 

"Woah!" Yugi stared with wide eyes as they ate their lunch, blinking. "You're gonna be on TV Jonouchi-kun!"

 

Katsuya grinned as he and the others sat at their desks, break having started a few minutes before. Honda turned from where he was opening the latest bento his sister made for looking after his nephew, eyes wide. "Hang on, what? Seriously?"

 

The grin persisted. "Haha, yep! On the 'Get the Million Yen' show! If I can clear all the games," he continued, grin widening more and more with each word, "I win a million!" And then he was heading for Osaka... Like, right away. He'd afford a high class plane trip with that much!

 

The looks on the others faces clearly said what they thought of this, before Honda raised an eyebrow. "Wait, I thought you were over entering these things... Didn't Mokuba pay off your old man's debts to keep the loan sharks off your tail?"

 

The blond shrugged, crossing his arms. "Yeah, but I don' like feelin' like I'm relying on 'm for this kind of thing... I know he's doing it 'cause he wants to, but still!" He grinned again, thinking of the contest. "Now that I'm in, not only can I return the favor, but I could probably visit my sister for the first time in years!"

 

"Hey," Honda said as he shook his head. "You haven't even won the money yet..." He appeared to realize just what Katsuya had said however, and turned back to the blond with wide eyes. "Wait, you have a sister!?"

 

Katsuya smirked. "Yeah yeah... Either way, I'll definitely win!" He chose not to mention the fact that his letter had somehow been postponed three months, instead silently thanking whoever had pulled the application from the back. Whoever did it had to be a _god_... He was also ignoring Honda, and quite obviously. "Anyways, you'll all be watchin' right?"

 

Yugi nodded. "Of course!" As the others joined in with a quick 'yeah! definitely!', (And an added ' _Seriously? A sister!_ ') Katsuya sank back into his seat with the same grin on his face. A million yen...

 

"Dude! You could at least tell me what she looks like!" No. No he 'couldn't'. So stop asking.

 

* * *

 

Saturday had come really, really fast Katsuya decided. It was two weeks from before school cut out for the summer, but in the back area of the stage for the show, it felt more like a blizzard. "Hihhh... What's with the AC in this place..." Nervously he poked his head around the wall as the announcer began the show, looking out at the crowd. Lesse... Yugi, Anzu, Honda (Who was still asking him about his sister damn it), Mokuba- Oh hey, he realized, Mokuba made i-

 

"Now," the announcer cried, snapping his attention back to the moment. "Here's tonight's challenger!" He walked out on the stage, willing the butterflies in his stomach to stop jumping around so he could focus on the events. "From Domino District," the announcer continued, "Our 16 year old guest, Jonouchi Katsuya-kun!" Haha! YEAH! The crowd cheered, and he quickly grinned at the sound.

 

"Yugi, Mokuba!" He waved at the four in the crowd, his friends eagerly waving back as the youngest of the group merely shook his head and grinned. As shouts of good luck came his way, Katsuya turned to follow where the announcer was now pointing.

 

"For the first challenge," he said, the blond quickly realizing he'd missed the summary of just how many challenges there were (It was supposed to be 3, right?), "The prize is one hundred thousand yen!" Katsuya watched as two rather sultry looking 'bunny girls' pulled out a large dart-board wheel. "The rules are simple," the announcer continued with a smile. "If you can hit the 'Hundred Thousand' area with a dart, you pass to the next stage! He looked at the wheel, grinning wider; aside from a small sliver labelled 'lose', pretty much the entire board was labelled '100,000'.

 

This would be simple! "Alright! Leave it to me!" Taking up the dart, he watched as the wheel began to spin at top speed before tossing it. "EASY!" There was a 'thunk' noise, and the teen paled. "H-Hihhh..." It was like... What, half a centimetre away from 'lose'? "That was... That was really close," he muttered under his breath. Like really really close.

 

Shit. The crowd in the meantime (Yugi and the others in particular he hoped) cheered wildly at the display as the announcer smiled. "PASS," he shouted, as the same 'bunny-girls' wheeled the dart board out. "And now, the next game, for the prize of 500,000 yen!" As the back walls moved to the side to reveal a small wire maze filled with steps and ramps, the announcer continued. "Now, Jonouchi-kun has a choice to either leave with 100,000 yen, or take this next challenge! Here are the rules!" As a rather idiotic looking helmet was placed on his head (It looked like... A plunger, in his opinion), he listened to the announcer. "If, before the time limit runs out, Jonouchi-kun can reach the goal without hitting the wires on the helmet, he passes! However," he added, motioning for Katsuya to move forwards, "If he fails, and touches the sides, he'll be given a shock, and he'll lose not

only the 500,000 yen prize, but also his current 100,000!" He turned, looking at Katsuya with the same, somewhat plastic wide smile he'd held the entire time. "So, what do you say?"

 

Katsuya nodded. There was no question after all. "I'll do it!"

 

* * *

 

As Yugi and the others sat down, they did not expect for the seat beside them to be occupied by Katsuya's employer. "M-Mokuba-kun?" The boy merely grinned at the reactions, the teens taking seats as the show prepared to begin. "What are you doing here," Yugi continued, blinking.

 

He shrugged. "Well... I heard that Jonouchi," the boy said, keeping the relationship 'professional' as he spoke (They didn't need to know that he was possibly only person who called him by his first name), "Was in a contest of some sorts on one of his work days... I figured if I was giving him the day off, I might as well come to watch."

 

That and he was just a little worried about the possible results. The others blinked, before nodding. "That's pretty good of you kid," Honda said as he leaned forwards to see from the opposite end of their seats. "I'm... Actually kinda surprised..." In fact, Honda looked as though he was going to drop the subject he'd been holding with Yugi up to that point; namely about what Katsuya's sister likely looked like.

 

Anzu rolled her eyes. "Of course you're surprised," she smuttered with an annoyed stare. "You were surprised when you found out he kept the job too." Actually, so was she but rather than argue it she had decided it was Katsuya's decision. Not to mention, things were probably improving for everyone involved as a result of it. "I think the fact that he did that after what happened before is enough reason to give him a day off."

 

As the two began to bicker again, the topic of Katsuya's sister officially vanishing, Yugi groaned. Not again... Mokuba in the meantime, merely laughed, before elbowing the short teen beside him. "Ah," he said as he pointed to the front. "It's starting!" So it was.

 

Cheers filled the room as filming began, Mokuba wincing as Yugi and the others shouted particularly loud. Dear lord... His ears felt like they were in a an engine now. "Hnn..." Maybe he should have just watched this on TV... Looking at Katsuya as the teen waved after them however, he had to grin despite the earache he was getting. What the heck, right? It was probably better he was here. Watching as the first task passed rather easily (which was expected, he mentally thought, given the fact that sour beginner's luck on a game show often equated to bad ratings and fewer contenders) he watched as a timer for 3 minutes appeared on a screen above the stage. "Hn..."

 

The three beside him fell silent as the rules of the second stage were explained, watching as a few seconds later the teen took off into the wire maze. It was kinda weird actually, watching him run through it... The helmet on his head looked way too much like a plunger, or a joystick. Watching as the timer hit ten seconds, he cheered as Katsuya crossed the finish line with relative ease.

 

"Hah! There's only one more challenge now!" His smile faded however, as he remembered the second contributor in game show ratings. Fatal losses at the last possible moment, crushed hopes as absolute drama hit the big screen. He swallowed, turning to glance at the others as a commercial break started. Most likely, this last one would be rigged...

 

Mokuba watched as Yugi left for the washroom, before turning his attention back to the stage. Man... Maybe he really shouldn't have come. If Katsuya's work was just going to be crushed like that...

 

Time passed, and the announcer came back on stage as another wheel was brought out from behind a wall. Mokuba frowned, looking at the others. The intermission break was already over- but the seat beside him was still empty. "Hey, when's Yugi getting back? Don't tell me he got lost..."

 

The other two blinked, before frowning. "Actually," Honda said before shrugging, "That probably happened.." Greaaat... He turned as the announcer spoke, starting the show up again. Final challenge, 1,000,000 yen, and damn it Katsuya even though you probably won't listen _just take your 500,000 and go_.

 

Of course, as the announcer pointed out the wheel (Which had a small enough chance of winning as it was), Katsuya cheerfully exclaimed 'I'll do it!'

 

"Aughhh..."

 

"Go for it, Jonouchi," Anzu called out, Honda's shouts mirroring hers for the most part. "You can do it!"

 

He sighed. "Yeah, provided it isn't rigged," he muttered under his breath. Which it likely was.

 

The wheel began spinning, the announcer telling Katsuya to yell 'stop' when he thought it would land on the right part of the wheel. The blond stood there, silent for a fairly large amount of time, his arms crossed as he studied the wheel. Ordinarily this would be hard enough as it was- it was a 1:6 chance he'd win, so Katsuya would have to wait for the exact right moment for it to stop on '1,000,000'. But if there was additional 'help' involved... Man, this ruined his entire day, thinking about this! There went asking Katsuya to play CapMon with him that evening.

 

"STOP!" The blond's voice filled the room, the wheel slowing to a stop as Katsuya and Mokuba both shut their eyes. And then...

 

"It's..." The announcer's smile widened with honesty rather than a facade this time, eyes filled with both cheer and disbelief. "IT'S THE MILLION YEN!" Mokuba opened his eyes, shaking his head in shock. What? He actually... The boy grinned, laughing. Only he could possibly take those odds and win with them! Really... As the crowd erupted into an applause, he had to laugh. Amazing. Only this guy could do that!

 

_'Somebody get him away from the cameras!'_

 

Mokuba frowned as shouts started to bite into the crowd, applause cutting off just as quick.

 

' _Stop filming!_ ' He blinked, both himself and all others in the room turning as what looked to be the company director began shouting at the camera. His eyes were wide and crazed in appearance, staring out into space as he shouted. ' _Give me all your money! All of it! AHAHAHA!'_ "What the..?" He raised an eyebrow, before Isono- acting as 'Legal Guardian' for the time being- tapped his shoulder. "Ah, Isono..."

 

He coughed. "I think it would be best to leave right now, Mokuba-sama." At least before the swarm to

get out began. As he took a glance at the incredulous and confused stares from the others around him, he nodded. "Y-Yeah... That's probably a good idea."

 

* * *

 

Needless to say, several days later when the ZTV company went bankrupt, Katsuya could be seen slamming his head against the wall of Kaiba's hospital room multiple times. "Damn it!" Of all the things to happen! It'd take at least another year to earn that much cash! (Well, maybe not a year but...) “Damn it damn it damn it!"

 

Mokuba rolled his eyes, arms crossed. "You know, from what Yugi said later Katsuya-n..." He paused, as though about to say something else before continuing. "From what he said Katsuya, the game was rigged as it was..."

 

He scowled, sitting at the chair. "Nyhhh... But if he hadn't 've done that weird penalty game thing..." What was that game supposed to do, seriously?

 

"What, you would have gotten the money?" The boy snorted, turning back to look at Seto from his chair. "Please, companies that stoop to those levels have _loads_ of ways to avoid actually dishing out the prize money. They could have easily called you out for some fake trick and gotten away with it, if they didn't just leave you in a paper trail...besides," he added with a frown, "Didn't the company that bought them out give you compensation?"

 

Katsuya blinked. "Compensation..?" Wait, that existed for people who weren't employed?

 

The boy rolled his eyes. "Yeah, compensation. They're supposed to pay you something since you went through all that trouble for nothing. Obviously not a million yen, but hey..." He grinned. "It'll probably be enough for a trip to Osaka, right?" Well... Barely enough, but it'd be something. At the suddenly cheery look on Katsuya's face, he laughed. Now that was more like the guy! He blinked however, when he spotted something in the teen's bag. "By the way... Is that a Monster Fighter?"

 

He blinked, before looking at the toy he'd brought in and grinning. "Heh, yep! Got it from Yugi's game shop! It's pretty fun!" Katsuya grabbed it from the bag, the scaled monster he'd bought hanging from it rather precariously as he turned to Mokuba. "Hey, you have one?"

 

"Yea," he said, simply looking at Katsuya's blankly. "But I didn't think they were that popular at high school... I don't have mine here either..." The blond shrugged, putting his back down.

 

"Eh, probably better that way..." He grinned, chuckling as he leaned back on his chair. "You'd thump me neh, 'Vice President-san'?"

 

Mokuba scoffed, gaining a 'Kaiba' face before attempting to imitate his older sister's voice. "Hmp! Of course I would, I'm heading the biggest game company in the world!" The voice was of course, not at all a good impression in terms of tone, and highly exaggerated, so all the boy got in response was laughter. "Hey," he shouted, returning to his usual one. "Stop laughing, I spent all night practising that!"

 

"Ahaha! What ever you do Mokuba," he said between breaths, "Make sure that's the first thing Seto-chan hears when she wakes up, alrigh'? I wanna see her face... Gahaha!"

 

"Oi! Stop calling my sister 'chan'!"

 

The rest of the evening passed as it usually did after that, Katsuya later (as expected) being sorely beaten in a game of Monster Fighter with Mokuba. Personally, Katsuya didn't know what was worse; being beaten by an eleven year old, or being beaten by a monster that looked like a tiny fluffy griffin.

 

* * *

 

It was now the last week of school before summer came, and things had gotten really tense, really quickly.

 

For one, Monster Fighter had taken off faster than fire and oil. So fast in fact, that essentially every store in not only Domino, but all nearby districts even, were out of stock for anything related to the game. Yugi's game-store had of course gained an incredible amount of profit as a result, but one could tell he was getting tired of telling people that the store was still out of stock.

 

(That, or just nervous.)

 

As it was, having gotten one early on Katsuya was thankfully able to simply spend his time trying to get used to the thing. For the moment school had finished for the day- Yugi had gone upstairs to the roof to play against some other kid from out of the school. Katsuya wasn't sure who exactly this Kouji guy was, but if the classmates reaction to him was anything he had an awfully bad feeling about it. Of course, it was shortly after Honda cleared up _exactly_ who he was for him, that Yugi came through the door resembling a kicked puppy.

 

'Monster Fighter Hunter'.

 

That was what Kouji Nagumo was, and what it essentially meant was that he stole other kid's sets to sell on their own. Including, as fate would have, Yugi's. As such Yugi decided in the end to borrow Katsuya's own Monster Fighter to let his 'other' self face him in retaliation...

 

However that worked.

 

He didn't really get how they switched- nonetheless when Katsuya spotted Mokuba's amused expression as he showed up at the Hospital (as usual) without his Monster Fighter, it took a bit of self control to not just shake the living crap out of him. Hell, with luck, that probably would have woken up Seto...

 

Maybe. Or not. "Sheesh, it's not like I expected for Yugi to end up losing the first time!" He grumbled from his chair, before shrugging. "On the bright side, with the other Yugi's record, I'll probably have it back tomorrow..." Honestly by this point, Yugi's 'penalty games' were just normal- even to the one who had been on the wrong end of them in the past.

 

Mokuba laughed, shaking his head. "Sure, but figures that the one day I remember mine, you end up coming without yours!"

 

He rolled his eyes. "Yeah yeah, rub it in y' twerp..." Idly Katsuya looked over to Seto, frowning. "Hey, Mokuba... Whadya think your sister would think of all this Monster Fighter business?"

 

For a moment, Mokuba looked at the ceiling in thought. "Well... Monster Fighter technologies aren't licensed by KaibaCorp... Actually it's one of the few really popular 'high tech' games that aren't..." He shrugged, smirking. "Anyways, given that fact it'd probably be something like ' _Hmp! This is just a_ _phase... Duel Monsters will always be the better game_! ' I think." He sighed, shrugging again. "It really sucks actually... Though I2's cards are really getting popular, CapMon just isn't keeping up.."

 

"I2? That's..." He frowned, trying to remember what that company was; it was kinda sad that he knew the names and info behind gaming companies, but completely fell short when it came to actual school work. The consequences of his current living spaces, he supposed. "Industrial Illusions right?"

 

He nodded. "Yep; KaibaCorp is more a tech building company. The cards themselves come from I2." The boy then shook his head, laughing. "If Duel Monsters takes off as much as I think it will though, the company will end up focusing on the game completely, haha!" Provided KaibaCorp wasn't completely hijacked by Pegasus at that point, he added mentally. The man had been hounding him enough as it was, and if things didn't let up soon...

 

Well, that was without considering the Big 5 on top of things. Katsuya snorted, shaking his head as well. "An entire company based on holograms for Duel Monsters... That's pretty obsessive..." He rolled his eyes from where he was slumped on his chair. "Knowing her that's exactly what's gonna happen... Auuuugh..." He then grinned, laughing as he turned the exasperation on its head. "Watch, the entire world will be built around card games or something crazy like that!"

 

"Hahaha! I doubt it's that bad!" Mokuba smiled sadly, turning his head to watch the steady 'in out' breathing of his comatose sister. "But yeah... Who knows, it might happen... When she wakes up anyways..." It'd been long enough already... Doctors were saying that if this kept up, she'd never wake up. As Katsuya turned away awkwardly, Mokuba bit his lip. He hadn't said it but... The fact was, he and Isono had lost control of the company at this point. The top five members of the Board of Directors ousted him easily, and while he still held his position as 'VP' it was little more than a figure head matter. They were losing power fast, even in their own personal affairs. "...Katsuya-nii," he finally said, the blond blinking at the honorific attached. Mokuba slowly looked back at him, before finally forcing the words out. "...When will she wake up, you think?"

 

"I..." The teen froze, before turning his eyes to the floor. The room quickly fell silent after that. After all... Just what did you say in that situation? What did you say when your best friend was the one that did it? "I don't know..."

 

* * *

 

The puzzle was a complex series of interlocking pieces. Each one meshed together just right, and you could never force a set into the other. Sometimes, it took hours to find the ones that interlocked properly. Other times, mere seconds. Right now Seto decided, she was half way through this puzzle...

 

And it showed no signs of holding a steady building pace. Even half way through, one couldn't see what a puzzle would look like in the end. Seto held her puzzle, resembling little more than a mess of pieces built around each other with a look of confusion, still more pieces surrounding it. "...Hnp," she said with a frown, idly spinning the puzzle as she worked.

 

Right now, all of the things she knew from this puzzle were a jumbled mess. Lots of things, things she didn't care about that somehow made her feel for them anyways were in this puzzle. And, the girl thought with a scowl, something told her that until it was complete she wouldn't know exactly what any of those things meant. She knew a few things- but not enough. She knew the boy, the 'brother's name was Mokuba, and that they were very close. She did not, however, know why, and it was something that was annoying her to no end. If she used logic she would say it was because they were apparently siblings- but it felt like that wasn't the only reason.

 

She knew that 'Mutt' also had a name, 'Jonouchi Katsuya', but she also knew that calling him Mutt would be much more amusing. And she knew, from the beginning, that the Mutt would be receiving a good shouting to as soon as she found him in person, because she really, really, didn't like being called 'Seto-chan'.

 

At all.

 

Seto also knew that she liked games. Chess was her favourite at one point, but she felt closer to cards now. Three in particular, a trio of blue eyed white dragons... She didn't know why though. She just... Did.

 

They were powerful, majestic creatures from what she could tell. Beautiful, and pure...

 

So many things from this puzzle that had yet to really stick. Little things, tiny things; for example, she didn't like snow much, but then she hated summer as well, possibly more so. It was hot and muggy, and there was a third reason but she couldn't recall that one either. Spring was her favourite- the reason was a secret, and unknown even to her. Fall was nice too, an in-between season... Winter came with oden at one point, a dish she knew she disliked considerably, but also hadn't had for a long time she felt. Not like a good cut of filet mignon... (Which she could recall liking considerably.)

 

She knew... Lots of things. Good things, things that made her smile... Things like her cards, the quiet...

 

And also bad things, terrible things that she could remember doing if she could just recall to whom and _why_! She felt sick... Nauseated by those things she did!

 

The girl moved the puzzle in her hands, looking for a happier memory overcome her. It was an odd memory, the one she successfully found. Not the one she wanted to see though, she thought with a frown. It was one of the Mutt... He was on a bed, unconscious. Not hearing him speak was strange, almost frightening in fact, and all she'd done in that memory was stare at him blankly, with some underlying feeling of rage.

 

And she didn't even know why. ' _When do you think she'll wake up?_ ' Seto blinked, looking up into the empty darkness around her. She felt as if it'd thinned out somewhat lately... As though instead of being at the bottom of a hole, she was somewhere in the middle of it. She couldn't be too sure though. There was a silence after Mokuba spoke, and for some reason it tore at her heart when she heard him say that. What hurt even more though, was when the Mutt answered.

 

 _'I don't know.'_ Wake up... They were talking about her. She knew that much. It was always 'her' that they were talking about after all. After the Mutt answered Mokuba, things got quiet again. It wasn't right she thought, the Mutt wasn't supposed to be quiet. He was supposed to yap-yap-yap, and occasionally bark and growl like the dog he was. Numbly, she grabbed another piece of the puzzle. It felt warm in her hands, like the ones that took place in either long past times or recent days. At least, she thought as she put the rest of the puzzle down the examine the piece, she thought it was like that. This was a school memory. She didn't understand most of those. Though she never heard any names, or recognized too many faces, there seemed to be a constant theme to these ones.

 

Namely the 'wrong' feeling. The feeling that something wasn't right, that she wasn't in the right place. Or maybe she just disliked school all together; it certainly seemed pointless enough when she watched the memories play. Gym class, the memory told her. Volleyball. The Mutt was sitting at the side. He had a broken arm... She felt like she should know why, but she didn't.

 

"...Stop looking at me," she found herself saying out loud, following the memory of playing volleyball with her thoughts. "...Stop it, right now." And yet instead of stopping, she stared back for a few seconds. 'Mutt' as well stared back, before hurriedly turning back to his papers with a look of partial fear and confusion.

 

And then the moment was gone. Seto held the piece in her hands, looking back at the the puzzle before picking it up and putting it in. It locked in beside the last piece she'd touched before, the one of the Mutt on the bed. Looking at the puzzle in silence, she frowned. "Who are you..." There was of course no answer, but in this place, she couldn't help but voice some of her thoughts. "...Why do I care that you exist?" It was a blunt question, and probably not one she would normally ask out loud.

 

It was also a rather good one for the moment, Seto thought to herself.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> By the current conversion rate, 1,000,000 Yen is roughly 9020 USD. The cost of a round trip on one of the slower trains between Osaka and Tokyo proved tricky to find however; an estimate based on non-reserved, advance purchase tickets was used to gauge the cost as just under 20,000 Yen however...which is roughly 180 USD. It seems that the rate is best described as 'two decimal places smaller, subtracting 10% from there'.


	14. Chapter 12 | Meganekko

With the beginning of summer came a lot of new things. Most notably it came with a sort of division between himself and the others due to events planned for the month of July. Mokuba had been right about the 'compensation'; sure enough, about a day after school finished and his 'part-time' job moved to 'full time', a check came in the mail. "Haaah! 20,000 yen!" It was of course, rather far cry from the million he'd won before, but it was as Mokuba had predicted.

 

Which was just enough to get a train ticket to and from Osaka to visit his sister. It was the economy trip of course, on the slower '5 hour' train, but hey- he'd expected no less in the first place and he had a feeling the same would be for his sister.

 

Besides, he'd never been on a train so he figured he might as well enjoy the longer trip. "Shizuka-chan, here I come~" At that moment, Mokuba poked his head in the kitchen, rubbing his eyes. Come to think of it he thought for a moment, Mokuba didn't seem to be doing the work for KaibaCorp anymore... At least, no more than the nearly figure-head styled works that he'd done before hand. The boy was present in the home more and more with the end of the current school term, participating in a form of work that had Katsuya wondering if the only reason he had the position was so that his sister could effectively monopolize more of the company.

 

Which was not much help when said sister was less than present. "Hn... Katsuya-nii, what are you talking about..?" That was another change, the blond idly added to his mental list as he ate his cereal. Since that day in the hospital, Mokuba had taken to adding the 'nii' from 'Ani' to his name. It was kinda weird, and he wondered what kind of reaction Seto would have if she woke up and heard the kid say that.

 

"Eh..." He held out the check, Mokuba looking over it blankly for a few moments. "Came in this mornin'. I was thinkin' of askin' my mom if I could visit her for the month..." He coughed, remembering his job... Which was supposed to grow into a full-time position now that school was out. "Er... If that's alright with yah..."

 

No big deal just. Taking a whole month off. (Erk.)

 

For a moment, Mokuba said nothing- before grinning. "Hah, no problem," he said as he passed it back. "On one condition!"

 

"Er... What's that?" Mokuba had also been acting a lot more loose around him... If the 'nii' wasn't any sign at least. Though now that he thought about it, everyone acted loose around him. He didn't think it was possible for anyone (Save a certain comatose ice queen) to act 'tight' around him actually. But this was kinda pushing it. Just a little.

 

The boy smirked. "I get to come too."

 

Ok.

 

He wasn't expecting that. Katsuya blinked, shaking his head a few times. He wasn't expecting that one at all. "Nyhhh... Say again?"

 

Mokuba rolled his eyes. "I. WANT. TO. COME. Should I break it up into letters instead," he asked as he crossed his arms. "I haven't been able to have a real vacation in ages, so if you're going, I wanna come too!" Why did the claim that would normally be obviously exaggerated if made by anyone else seem so pathetically honest in this situation?

 

He scratched his ear, frowning. "Hnnn..." Sheesh, much as he liked this kid... Mokuba could really be a brat sometimes. And the worst part was, the kid could technically fire him and kick him to the curb if he didn't like his answer. He didn't think he'd do that in this situation of course, but... "Yeah but..." He continued to frown, finishing off the rest of his breakfast. "What about..." The statement was left unfinished, Katsuya turning away awkwardly.

 

That brought him to the third 'new thing'. After the hospital had come out and insisted that there was nothing more they could do for Kaiba, Mokuba had pretty well flipped out and gone overkill in response. Instantly, everything was moved over and paid for, a few specialized doctors hired to check in on a few things and otherwise butt out and leave it to the personal staff. Not that Katsuya minded overkill... Hell, in the end, they'd still gotten everything they needed for the maids to cover what was needed from that point on. It was just...

 

Eerie.

 

To walk past the open bedroom door and see Kaiba's still unmoving body 'sleeping' in the bed with a tube in her nose that led to the stomach for food. Machines bought out from the hospital sat at the bedside, monitoring Seto's vitals. Occasionally Seto just wouldn't be there, having been moved to the washroom to be cleaned up- a thought that disturbed him just as much as the bed issue. It was worse during the afternoon though. When the maids would carefully lift the woman's body into a wheelchair and sit her by the window, as though hoping, praying, that somehow the light pouring through would wake her up.

 

Regardless of the fact that it obviously wasn't working.

 

The creepier part? Seto wasn't comatose anymore. She'd entered what the doctors had called a 'vegetative state', a 'semi-aware coma'. Mokuba was ecstatic at the hospital when they said it. The prospect of his sister even showing the slightest sign of recovery was incredible, and the kid had practically been bouncing off the walls. Or he was... Until he was told that when a vegetative state progressed too long, there was a high risk of it becoming permanent. Which essentially meant that even though, when sitting at the woman's bedside Seto occasionally opened her eyes, she wasn't actually looking. Her eyes were still blank, soulless, staring at the ceiling or wall or whatever the hell her head was turned toward...

 

And it wasn't likely to change any time soon. It was like a zombie. Except that the zombie was silent as the grave and paler than a ghost, simply existing in the room. Now that Katsuya thought about it, this was probably why Mokuba needed some time away from the house. Anything to just forget about the shell of a woman they were living with right now.

 

"Y' know what," he said with a false smile, cutting himself off. "Sure. I'll call my mom... BUT," he added as he moved for the phone, turning to point accusingly at Mokuba. "I pay for my own train ticket, alrigh'? An' we're goin economy class!"

 

Something seemed to flash through Mokuba's face for a moment as his friend said this, but in the end, he grinned. "Great! I'll pack my things!" As he left the room, he turned for a moment. "What kind of things can we do in Osaka? Like... I heard that they're known for food..."

 

The teen froze, having just finished dialing the number. "Er... I... I dunno..."

 

"Oh." Mokuba left the room, his voice still audible as he went down the hall. "Let me know so I can pack everything right!"

 

He nodded. "Will do!" Little did he know just how much his sister would tell him in those few minutes over the phone as a result. Because if he had...

 

Well, at the very least they would no longer have to wonder what they could do in Osaka.

 

* * *

 

"Sheesh," Katsuya said for the umpteenth time as he and Mokuba boarded the train and took their seats. "This list is huge..."

 

Mokuba nodded, looking down the list of activities that the blond's younger sister, 'Shizuka', had apparently decided for them. "Yeah... Can she and your mom even afford all of this?"

 

He shook his head, still staring at the list with wide eyes. "I don't know... But I'm glad we had it while we packed..." Lest they end up incurring the wrath of Mother and Sister... He could hear them now- ' _We gave you a list! Why aren't you ready!_ '

 

There was a lot more to Osaka than food, Katsuya had quickly decided when his sister picked up the phone the other day. Shizuka had been surprised of course; he rarely called, what with long distance charges and he himself not wanting to take advantage of Mokuba's cash and all (Particularly with the fact that, as the boy admitted shortly after the call was made, he was officially a 'figure head' once more). She was more than glad to hear his voice however. Even more so that he'd be coming to visit for once- and from what Mokuba could tell from asking, this would be the first time Katsuya saw the girl in person since he was ten. So after finally getting it through to the girl's head that yes, he could afford to come, and no, his dad was not involved, she'd proceeded to call her mom over and (To his horror) go over a long list of events for them to do over the summer.

 

They'd been so into it, that it took him about fifteen minutes before he could finally tell them about Mokuba... By which point the boy had given up waiting and was standing beside Katsuya with a suitcase. Shizuka clung to the fact that Mokuba would be coming instantly for reasons completely beyond Katsuya's knowledge (He'd thought they would disagree for the first bit actually). Apparently, as was revealed earlier, she was gushing over the idea of having a young boy at the house that she could talk with when her brother started acting like a prat. Now that he thought about it though, she was probably just joking about that. Right?

 

Right?

 

Well, whether it was true or not they now had a large list of events that he had failed to properly pay attention to the planning for. "Lesse... There's the Kaiyukan Aquarium..."

 

Mokuba nodded. "Yea," he said with a smile. "It's second largest aquarium in the world-"

 

Beside him, Katsuya scowled. "Lemme finish..!" As the boy fell silent (albeit with a smirk), he continued. "Anyways, the Tempozan ferris wheel, which is beside it... Shin-Umeda City... Er..." He frowned, turning to Mokuba. "What's that?"

 

The boy grinned. "Oh! I heard it's really cool... It's got a floating garden, an underground mall, a-"

 

Well sheesh, what did they need a list for? "Alright alright, I got it!" He watched as Mokuba pouted about being cut off, before shaking his head. "I'll jus' wait till we're there... Er, lesse now..." He continued down the list, shaking his head. "Osaka castle, the Sumiyoshi Taisha temple, the Tamatsukuri Inari Shrine.." He paused frowning. "Why are we visitin' a fox shrine..?"

 

Mokuba shrugged. "I dunno, but I'm leaving something there when we go; Inari's supposed to be the god of industry you know..." The boy leaned back on his seat, the train beginning to move. "And I could sure use some of his help right now..." Oh yeah... Business problems.

 

Katsuya nodded. "Yeah... I hear yah..." He frowned, looking at the boy. "Hey, is it alright..? You comin' out here with me an' no one else?"

 

Another grin. "'Course! What, you think I'd come here if I was liable to be shot or something?" He laughed, Katsuya going red; those had been his thoughts actually... "Sheesh Katsuya-nii... I cleared things up with Isono, it's fine! Besides," he added with a smirk, "I should be fine with someone I hired for security!"

 

The blond scowled, clutching his list. "Yeah yeah yeah, cause hey, not like I have to face your sister when she wakes up if somethin' happens to yah..." He was assuming that when she woke up she'd be different of course. After all, the other Yugi's 'penalty games' had to have some sort of affect... He thought so at least. "Lesse... Lastly we've got the Tennouji Zoo, Tsuutenkaku tower, the city itself 'n brackets...whatever that means, a beach trip, and..." He gaped, reaching the bottom. Shit, by this point he'd just written down whatever he heard, he didn't actually expect... "Holy shit... They're taking us t' Universal Studios!" As if all the other stuff wasn't expensive enough!

 

The boy next to him jumped, his thoughts mirroring Katsuya's. "Seriously? With everything else they have on that list?" Mokuba's jaw dropped, and he snatched the list from the teen's hands. "Lemme see that..." Sure, _he_ could easily afford all of this (Actually, he'd kinda told Katsuya to make sure they knew he'd be paying for himself), but. Holy shit... "What did your mom do, win a lottery Katsuya-nii?" He could see the zeroes floating around in his head...

 

Katsuya merely shook his head, wondering himself. "I... I don't know... I mean..." He frowned lightly, taking the list back and pocketing it. "I thought they were tryin' t' save up for Shizuka's operation..."

 

"Operation..?" Mokuba blinked. What operation? He hadn't heard anything about... Wait, he didn't hear about Shizuka 'ever' let alone a surgery, of course he didn't.

 

The blond sighed, leaning back on his seat. "Yeah... Shizuka-chan's got a condition," he began, rubbing his head. "Her eyesight's deterioratin', disappearin' day by day... Th' doctor's don' know when it'll really be gone for good, so for now it's jus' a matter of glasses an' a helping hand when it blacks out but..." Katsuya bit his lip, before continuing. "There's a surgery they could do... It's only a 50% shot, but it's the best they've got. Only problem is..."

 

Mokuba blinked, knowing what Katsuya was saying. "The cost... Then," he said with a frown, "If you knew all this, why didn't you say anything?"

 

He snorted. "Seriously? Yah already gave me a job and a place to stay, regardless of what happened at 'Death-T'." Katsuya's voice became rather stiff, while Mokuba flinched at the mention. "I mean... Yer s... Yer brother," he corrected as he noted that a few people on the train were listening in now, the attention of 'Mokuba Kaiba' at least somewhat eye-catching to the common passer-by. "He's sleepin an' he hasn' woken up... And then there's everythin' else y' mentioned..." The blond sighed, shaking his head. "I can't ask that. Not for th' price it is..."

 

The boy blinked, turning away awkwardly. He couldn't fault him for that... But this wasn't...

 

This wasn't Katsuya's fault! This wasn't...

 

"Hey," the blond said, a hand on his shoulder to pull him from those thoughts. "You still mad at 'im? Yugi, I mean?"

 

He nodded. "Of course," he said somewhat curtly. "I mean... Because of him, n-niisama is..." The boy sighed, holding his bag close. "At the same time though... Even with all that's happening, I know that..." Mokuba swallowed, turning to Katsuya with a frown of sorts. "Niisama will wake up! I know it... I just wish..." That she could be there with them.

 

While Katsuya didn't think that Seto would have necessarily come along if she had been awake at that point, the thought was still there as the train headed for its destination.

 

* * *

 

Four to five hour train trips sucked hard, but when he thought about it, it'd still been fun. After the awkward silence had been broken by the free drink that came with their ticket, Mokuba had spent a majority of the ride peering around his friend to look out of the window. Judging his reaction, he hadn't really left Tokyo... Ever.

 

At least not by train in any case. "Woah," he said as he stared out the window, sipping his drink. "We get four hours of this?" Well, maybe not four hours of Mount Fuji but...

 

Katsuya shrugged, grinning. "Nyh... Pushin' five, actually. Should probably sleep teh tell you the truth..." He winced, before yawning. Truth be told, the train they'd taken was an early one. While the sun was up already, it was actually about 5 in the morning... Sunrise was 4:30 AM, and they'd boarded the train not long before that. As for when they woke up to get there... Ick.

 

There was a reason they'd put together a few snacks for the ride. Mokuba laughed as the blond yawned again, shaking his head. "I'm not tired... I told you to go to bed early didn't I?"

 

He scowled. "Yea, but yah seem to forget that my job is night shift!" Meaning he'd been awake the entire time! As he attempted to get into a comfortable enough position to sleep in, he yawned again. "I mean... 'S great that yah didn' fire me when yah got those other guards in..." He paused, before adding with a short smile, "Yah know, the qualified ones, who aren't fumblin' through gun trainin' still?"

 

"Yeah... Well you have to admit, people have been looking through the gate a little too much lately..." He sighed, before yawning. Aggggg... Now he was tired too, this was his fault! Ignoring that for the

sake of conversation, he tried to adjust his own seat. "Besides; I need someone other than the maids to make sure that niisama isn't attacked or something in the middle of the night..." Though with all the extra staff the 'Big 5' kept requesting... It was hard to filter through it all.

 

They fell silent, Katsuya turning away with a nod. "...If that's th' case, then why-"

 

Mokuba cut him off. "Why come? I've got someone there, don't worry. Hobson might not look like much, but in his younger years he was a soldier. And that's without mentioning Isono." He curled up in the seat, using his duffel bag as a pillow. "Trust me; if anything happens, they'll be there." Right. Isono and... Hobson. Hihhhhhh. He still hadn't gotten over that guy's involvement in 'Death-T'.

 

Deciding not to mention that for the moment, he fingered a picture he'd taken out of his wallet for the drive. How different would she look... Probably not much, it was a recent picture that Shizuka had mailed to him after all. Beside him, Mokuba looked over at it briefly before blinking.

 

"Oh hey..." He moved, leaning over the blond's arm to look at it. "That your sister?"

 

"Yep- She's 14, last year of middle school now." He held it out, showing Mokuba the image of the young girl in a standard school's sailor fuku. "Don' tell my other friends though," the blond added with a scowl. "I don' wanna have to pry Honda off my sister."

 

Bad enough that the guy knew he _had_ one... Mokuba snickered, returning to his spot. "No worries, I won't..."

 

Katsuya frowned. "I don' like th' sound of that..." It was the sound of a lie...

 

Or at least the sound of a fake lie. He didn't get an answer however, as the boy seemed to 'magically' fall asleep once he said that. Little brat...

 

...Though he supposed he had it coming, with all the good that was going on.

 

* * *

 

There were pieces missing in the puzzle.

 

Seto sat by the now tiny pile where four pieces sat, before looking at the mess of a puzzle she held in her hands. Too many pieces were missing than there were in the pile. And for now, it seemed that none of the ones there would match up at the moment. As to where the other pieces would come from, she didn't know- and that was what disturbed her.

 

She sighed, putting the puzzle down. As the pieces had come together, she'd felt herself grow. Not like she did in the memories though. More like... How she could have grown. Perhaps even 'should have', if one thought about it more romantically. It was hard to describe... A difficulty that she resented. Her hair was still short; she liked it that way, off her back and out of her eyes. Easy to deal with and keep out of the way. Or maybe that was from becoming too used to the disguise she appeared to take in the memories. She wasn't sure why she was hiding in them... Covering up the way she did. After all, she was a strong woman wasn't she? She could have easily stood her ground and simply cast the disguise aside, setting things right.

 

Yet something stopped her in those memories, and now she felt that it was too late. Far too late, to make that change. Perhaps it wasn't really- but that didn't change that the feeling was _there_. Seto held the puzzle close, frowning. Her name... She still didn't know what it was. She assumed it was 'Seto' for the moment; 'Mokuba' called her 'Seto-neesama', and the Mutt would call her 'Seto-chan'. (She hated that mutt... so much right now...)

 

She wasn't sure though. There was something else in the back of her mind that was arguing against it and though she couldn't hear it, it was enough to bring doubt to her mind. The girl sighed, picking up one of the pieces before looking into the distance at a faded image of what looked to be a ceiling. She felt like she could run at that. Just stop the puzzle and 'wake up', but for some reason she knew that wouldn't work. Somehow, she just knew that doing that would be 'cheating', and would only leave her worse off than before. Besides, all she could see was either a wall, or occasionally a faded image of a sunny sky. Nothing more. And then the 'window' would close, and it would be dark again.

 

"Hmp," she said with a scowl, turning her back at the oddly muggy feeling she got from the 'heat' in the 'window'. "It would probably just be boring anyways!" Besides, it was summer wasn't it? She'd just wait until autumn instead. The 'window' warmth, the warmth from the sun, it wasn't the same as the heat she got when the Mutt and Mokuba were talking. It was like she was actually there, and even though she felt like they wouldn't have done this if she was awake... She almost liked it. Almost. Right now though...

 

The window shut, and she shivered. "...Cold..."

 

They were gone...

 

* * *

 

When the train pulled into Shin-Osaka station, the boys had been awake for about half an hour.

 

And half an hour was more than enough time for the cheer of vacation to build up. "OSAKAAAA!" Katsuya was (as usual) loudly sharing his excitement to anyone who cared, backpack and suitcase on hand with Mokuba's own bags in his other. "OOOOOSA _KAAAAAA_!"

 

Mokuba rubbed his ears, ducking his head down slightly. "Katsuya-nii! Pipe down!" As the blond turned to him, he huffed. "Really... And you wonder why Niisama calls you a 'mutt'..."

 

"Nyhhh... What's that supposed to mean!" As Mokuba simply laughed in response, the teen continued to fume. "I ain't anything like a mutt!" Before Mokuba could continue his pestering (Because he had lots and lots of comments for that last one), a pair of voices from the entrance of the station caught their attention.

 

"Katsuya-niihan," one said, the source running forwards to tackle her baggage laden brother. "You came!" From behind the girl, a middle aged woman with curled brown hair chuckled. Though she was dressed fairly well, it was evident that time had not been easy on her. All the same Mokuba thought as he looked at 'Ms. Kawai', she appeared to have taken it in stride and most of her wrinkles were signs of a woman who smiled often rather than frowned.

 

"Katsuya..." As the younger of the two released her brother from her hold, Ms. Kawai moved forwards to pull the teen close in a warm embrace. "Oh it's been so long... To think you would come all this way when your father..."

 

Was in jail? ...Yeah... The teen flushed, coughing awkwardly. "Aw... It... It's fine Mom, jus'... Anyways, er, 'D like t' introduce you to my friend..." And employer, he added mentally. As his mother released the hug to look down at Mokuba, he coughed and continued. "This 's Kaiba Mokuba... He's th' one who's given me a place t' stay lately.." Not to mention a job... Though they decided not to mention anything concerning KaibaCorp to the woman.

 

The women turned to him, Mokuba smiling in response. "Nice to meet you!" As he said this however, he quickly found himself in a bone crushing hug. "ACK!" Wh-Wh-What! The hug was soon released, as Ms. Kawai gushed. "I couldn't help it... You're so cute, you reminded me of when Katsuya was a little younger than you..."

 

Really... "Mom, I'm right here..." The woman appeared to ignore this, instead continuing her conversation with Mokuba. Who looked like he wanted nothing more than to hide in a plant pot after that hug. Flushing completely red, he attempted to listen to what Ms. Kawai was saying. It took a few moments before he realized that she had asked him how old he was. "Ah... Ah... I turn 12 on the seventh..." Blinking, the girl (Shizuka right?) turned to face Mokuba.

 

"The seventh? That's only in three days isn't it..?" As her mother nodded, she smiled. "Then, we should do something for it, neh?" As Mokuba blinked, looking slightly flustered (He'd come to avoid attention after all, not get more), Katsuya grinned.

 

"Hah, yeah! That's a great idea!" At that moment, his stomach grumbled, and he groaned. No breakfast... Snacks weren't breakfast... Ehhhhh. "Ny... Can we get some food first..?" A louder grumble came through, Mokuba blushing as he looked down at his stomach in question.

 

"Er... Yea... If that's alright with you Ms. Kawai..." It was kinda weird, not being the one in charge for once. Though he kind of liked it; made him feel a little more 'normal'.

 

She nodded. "Of course; follow us, we can go over the summer plans in the car, it's a long trip back to the house." The boys nodded, before following them in. For all that Mokuba was used to his elder sister's method of industrial planning, there could be nothing to prepare him or Katsuya for the verbal avalanch about to drop. From as early as the minute they had their bags and things in the car, both Shizuka and her mother were rattling on about the various plans and schedules they had set in place for the coming days, the majority of it passing in one ear and out the other as the boys gaped. Needless to say, it was only the prospect of breakfast that eased their confused and addled brains as they left the car half an hour later.

 

* * *

 

The next two weeks could scarcely be described with words. If anything, words could only describe the beginning of each one 'event' that took place, while the rest of the day (in Mokuba's opinion) could be matched only in snap-shots they had taken through cameras. The words however, were generally something along the lines of...

 

"KAIYU _KAAAAAAAN_!"

 

"Katsuya-nii, please stop yelling!"

 

"Niihan..."

 

Shortly after which they would end up watching a whale shark in an immense tank, wandering under glass tunnels surrounded by coloured fish and corral.

 

And... "TEMPO _ZAAAAAAN_!"

 

"KATSUYA-NII!"

 

"Really, Niihan, you're too loud..." This was particularly annoying given that they were at the top of a ferris wheel when Katsuya shouted this time, the blond having waited until the 'Peak Moment'.

 

And... "TENNOUJ- _GACK_!" Katsuya hurriedly cut himself off and ducked as his sister proceeded to begin swatting at his ears with pamphlets, Mokuba left to stare openly as they stood at the entrance to the Zoo.

 

"As we've been saying," she said with a frown, pushing the glasses she was wearing back up her face. "Stop shouting wherever we go, Niihan..." There had been a muffled 'hai' in reply what with Katsuyta hiding behind a bush for a few moments, and the three continued on their way through Osaka's various tourist points.

 

So far, the summer had been... Amazing. The first day had been dampened slightly when their suspicions on the amount of summer activities they were having were affirmed of course. Shizuka was indeed going blind, and the doctors had told them the amount of time left. With the time they'd been given, operation costs would be impossible to amass; the current trip was effectively a 'blow it all away' event, a great big 'party' before the wall hit them. A final event for Shizuka while she could see it all.

 

However, Shizuka quickly calmed her brother down by simply telling him how glad she was that the boy had come. How proud she and her mother were, that he had continued to go to school rather than simply getting a low-class job out of Middle School. And more importantly, the fact that even if she wouldn't see anymore, she would always be able to see that summer in her mind... And it was likely that last fact that mattered the most to Katsuya. So far, Mokuba thought as they sat on the steps of the Tamatsukuri shrine at the end of the day, this was an incredible summer. That day in particular had been spent travelling just about everywhere, as Shizuka showed them around the enormous city of Osaka and dragged them around to store after store. And in that one store he'd come across...

 

Mokuba looked down at the two lockets he'd bought, each styled like the back of a duel monster's card. He'd spotted them while Shizuka was pulling Katsuya out of a game store. Looking at them... He couldn't help but feel like they would be good for his older sister. After all, even if she wasn't 'really' there, the fact that she was now opening her eyes was proof that she was closer right? So then maybe, if they gave her some more pieces to the puzzle by being there... By finding things to add to it for her...

 

Mokuba watched as the sun set before them, Katsuya and Shizuka sitting at the steps further up to share stories on what they'd missed with each other. He wished... He wished he hadn't taken those days at the orphanage for granted. So badly, he wished now... Listening to the chatter behind him, unable to make out the words, he wondered what would have happened if they had never seen Gozaburo. Would they have still ended up in Domino? Would they have never been adopted? Or would things be completely different? He fingered the lockets he'd bought, idly thinking back to his birthday. That day...

 

He and Katsuya had no idea what Shizuka and 'Akie' (Katsuya's mom) were planning, but they'd been pulled out of the house and separated fairly quick. Shizuka left with Katsuya for something or other, and Akie dragged him off for a 'drive' to pick up food from the grocery store. Apparently he needed to 'experience grocery shopping', as well as help an 'old woman' when her own children weren't. (He had decided not to mention that Akie was the one who sent the two out of the house.)

 

And so he was pulled off through the aisles, being handed wrapped packages and things. With strict instructions to not look in any of the bags _at all_. They'd thus driven back, Mokuba confusedly carrying half the groceries from the car before walking into an oddly dark house. Eerily dark in fact. For a second, as he put the bags on the table and looked for the light, he'd thought the worst; that Pegasus had gone to the next level and hired someone to take him out only to find no one but Shizuka and Katsuya in the house. And that the someone had decided to take them out instead, to send a cutting message with no words. As soon as he turned on the light though, he was quickly proven wrong.

 

"SURPRISE!"

 

"Happy birthday!"

 

"Hwah!" Mokuba had jumped, eyes wide as Katsuya, Shizuka, and Akie (Who had gone in first, now that he thought of it) leapt out from behind the table, decorations strung around the room. It was...

 

Unexpected. Really unexpected, though at the same time he probably should have guessed shouldn't he have? Yet... Birthdays at Gozaburo's were generally a fancy dinner, reminders of expectations, and maybe a book. They didn't have big parties with thickly iced cakes and colourfully wrapped presents, like what was sitting on the table. Gozaburo didn't believe in games after all; they didn't 'rule' companies. What ruled companies was logic, numbers, and politics- if a birthday party was used for anything, it was used to build connections between their 'father' and other business runners who happened to have children around their age.

 

And of course those words and actions had only incensed Seto, driving her to prove the dead man wrong... And that year, after Seto drove Gozaburo into suicide, there hadn't even been a 'dinner' at her party. There hadn't even been a moment to acknowledge it, not that he would have known how in the first place. So he didn't expect anything at his.

 

This year however... Was different. It was different, and yet he didn't realize how different it was. Shizuka and Akie didn't know what to give him of course, so what they did do was pester Katsuya the day before on likes and dislikes, to find out that he'd never been to a street festival. So his present wasn't so much something to play with, as something to appreciate (or so he was told in private by an astounded Katsuya). The women had at the last minute ordered in a yukata his size- technically they'd procured one for Katsuya as well, but the point was Mokuba- which was perhaps why his had come with a little satchel for goods.

 

For all that Katsuya had emphasized how 'awesome' the gift was, he had found himself sorely confused; any conversations he had in the past never even touched on yukata's and festivals, so he had little clue why he was being handed something that looked like a silken bathrobe. He'd only been 6 when he and Seto had been adopted after all; so any memories of festivals were really... Faded. Almost non-existent actually.

 

Between this and the general lack of socializing he had until only recently, he had little choice but to awkwardly ask what it was. ...A question swiftly replied to with a loud _'HEH, YOU DON'T KNOW?_ ' from Katsuya. He then watched as Shizuka lightly smacked her older brother over the head for shouting in the house again, and ended up pulled aside by Akie to explain.

 

There were a few festivals that would occur early into August- she intended to bring them to a smaller, Fireworks Festival that would happen the day before they were intending to leave, but after she off-handedly mentioned a much larger festival Mokuba's curiousity had been hooked. It would be a full ten days after they were meant to leave, if they attended the Bon Odori festival's first day...but Yukata were what was worn to such events, and after some thought Mokuba made the call to have plans rescheduled so they could do that much.

 

Not long after the discussions finished, Katsuya was finally able to give the boy his own present as well. Much like the yukata, Mokuba found himself pleasantly surprised once again- this time for different reasons all together. He had known that Katsuya's position on security gave him access to all film on the cameras both inside and out, but he never figured he'd take advantage of it. (No offence to the blond's intelligence or anything but... Well the 392 out of 400 was all he had to think on the matter.)

 

Somehow, by playing his cards just right at a rare time when he, Mokuba, and Seto herself sat at the table to eat at the same time for breakfast, he'd managed to make the woman smile... And catch it on the camera by setting it up 'just' so for that one moment. It was a heavy gamble- Mokuba recalled reaming Katsuya out himself for moving the camera in question from where it was supposed to be, telling the teen that it was his 'last chance' before he considered laying him off. (Though he admitted to lying about that later when they were playing CapMon for secrets, and Katsuya managed to win. For once.)

 

Even more of a gamble was getting the picture just so that it looked like they were all smiling at the screen. Technically, the smile was more of a smirk; he remembered the day clearly actually... Seto was making that face because Katsuya had said something stupid, Seto had countered, and the blond had (supposedly) scowled in response. He of course had smiled as well, watching the exchange between the two. It was a rare moment of time where Seto's mood was more tolerable after all, so it had been a bit like watching a married couple on a TV drama (though he'd never tell them that). In that instant though, Katsuya quickly switched from his scowl to a smile as well- quickly, while they sat beside each other in a row, facing the same direction and camera only for him to drop it and continue on his day.

 

The quality wasn't the best. That was expected, it was a security camera. But it was framed in a carefully, if not well made clay frame that the blond had likely made with his sister's help. A picture with all three of them...

 

Smiling...  
  
Just as he could recall saying he dreamed of not long before the photograph's date.

 

As the sun set Mokuba's thoughts were pulled back to the present, his eyes watching the colours bleed across the sky. He wanted it to be real. He wanted it to be more than a set up image, a trick of timing. He wanted to go to parks and zoos with _her_ and not just Katsuya, to see her laugh and smile like when they were little, to comfort him when he needed her there...

 

He wanted...

 

He _wanted._..

 

As the other two came up beside him and told him it was time to head back, he put up a smile and nodded, his dream and wish pounding through his head.

 

He wanted his sister to wake up.

 

* * *

 

Sometimes, Mokuba thought to himself, he didn't know if Shizuka's name was a form of irony or not. 'Shizuka' of course meant quiet. He knew that much. And her last name, 'Kawai' was just a standard last name of course, but it _did_ sound like 'kawaii'... Which meant cute. Watching as she proceeded to ream out her older brother for yelling again (This time it was ' _MATSURIIIII!_ '), he laughed nervously. Would they have acted differently towards each other if Shizuka had gone blind already? Or if they simply saw each other later in the year?

 

The questions moved out from his mind, as he turned his attentions to the others. "Niihan," she was yelling, crossing her arms while Katsuya peered back out from a nearby tree this time. "Stop yelling all the time!" As Katsuya rubbed his head, looking remarkably different in a yukata, he scowled.

 

"Nyhhh... Come on Shizuka-chan.. I haven't been to a festival in ages!" Not to mention, they had made the blond wear something that looked just a little awkward on him. Particularly with the slight tan all the time outside had caused. "Lighten up!"

 

Mokuba had to grin at that, though it faltered slightly as the wind passed under his own yukata. The boy shivered- not wearing pants was... Weird. He quickly pulled himself back into focus. "Katsuya-nii has a point! This is my first time too... _BUT_ ," he said, before the blond could blow a raspberry at his sister. "You're still too loud!"

 

"Awww come on..."

 

At that moment Akie came around in her own, rather dark coloured yukata with a smile. "Keep close everyone," she warned as people swarmed about the area. "It's easy to get separated in these places, and I have more than one to look out for now, neh?"

 

Shizuka nodded, while Katsuya merely shrugged. "Yeah yeah... Oh, Mokuba!" The boy turned abruptly as his arm was grabbed by Katsuya. "Come on, I wanna show you something..."

 

Akie's shouts could be heard as he was pulled off, Mokuba barely making out the words ' _Make sure you're at the docks by 4_!' "Neh, Katsuya-nii," Mokuba said as he was pulled away. "What happens at 4?"

 

"Hnn..." He blinked, crossing his arms in thought. Lets see.. There were the stands, which they would visit now... And... "Oh yeah! There's a giant parade that takes place for th' entire day... At around 5, they enter boats and the parade goes down th' river!" He turned, the bridge and docks clearly visible in the distance. "Mom probably wants t' get there before the crowd really sets in, so we can get on th' boats for that part."

 

He followed Katsuya's gaze, before turning. "What's so important about the last part of the parade though?"

 

The teen scratched his head, trying to remember. "Er... I think it has somethin' t' do with sunset... Can't really remember though..." Gee, that was helpful... "Anyways, hey look! Goldfish stand!" He pulled the boy off to the side, grinning. "Maaaan, I thought these were only around at like... Tiny street festivals!"

 

Those who were running the stand laughed, before the man closest shook his head. "Just because everyone's busy watching the parade, does not mean that we can't have some other forms of entertainment!" He smiled, gesturing to the multi-coloured goldfish in the shallow pool in front of him. "Why don't you have a go, see if you can take home a friend for your little brother," the man

continued, looking at Katsuya.

 

"Er, actually," he said as he coughed, a little red at the fact that they'd actually been mistaken for siblings. They didn't even look anything alike, how... "Actually, he's not-"

 

He was cut off as Mokuba searched around the small cloth wallet he had been given earlier for some change. "I'll try," he said with a grin, looking at the price. “200 yen right?" As the man nodded, his grin grew. "Then tell me what to do!"

 

The man beamed. "A first timer ahh..? Well, all you have to do," he said as he took the money, handing Mokuba a bowl and paper-net, "Is use that 'pon' there to catch as many goldfish as you can." He leaned back, before continuing. "You can continue until the paper in the 'pon' is gone, or if you have enough fish that you want to stop." Clearly, this game had him by the teeth. Mokuba nodded, before looking into the pool of fish. Ok...

 

Go! The net went in lightening fast, a pair of fish caught on the surface. "Haha!" He carried it over to his bowl, grinning. "Eas- Eh?" The boy's eyes widened as the net fell through completely, the fish falling back into the bucket with a shocked splash. "What?"

 

Behind him, Katsuya chuckled before he fished out 200 yen himself and grabbed another pon. "Yah gotta go slow wi' these," he said as he rolled his eyes. "I mean, I know th' firs' time I did this, I did th' same thing you did... But paper is paper! It's gonna break in water!" Even he knew that! ...Wait he should rephrase those thoughts...

 

Mokuba scowled, going slightly red at the mistake. "Yeah yeah... Hn?" He blinked as Katsuya put his hand around his, the 'pon' in his grip. "What..?"

 

"C'mon," he said with a smile. "Les get some fish for yer real 'brother', alrigh?" As Mokuba looked up with wide eyes a moment before nodding, Katsuya guided the boy's hand to the pool. "Alright! Lets try this again..." As the net hovered above the water, he gently tilted Mokuba's hand to the side before dipping the net in just before the paper. Mokuba's face was tight with concentration, while the blond was flashing back to 8 years ago. ' _Niisan_ ,' Shizuka was crying, the pair standing in front of a small goldfish stand. He could hear her voice clearly, before the accent of her new home set in, and before that new home was even a thought in their mother's mind. ' _Niisan, I can't catch them! They're moving too fast!_ '

 

He'd looked over at the fish he had just failed to catch moments and walked back with her then, taking her hand like he was Mokuba's and doing this same thing. Took a few tries... But he'd done it somehow, and the same technique would no doubt work again. "And now... When th' right fish passes..."

 

_'...And it gets just close enough.._.'

 

Splash!

 

A pair of fish- one black one gold- were quickly scooped out, both falling into the bowl before the net was returned to the water. "It..." Mokuba grinned, turning up to Katsuya a moment before looking back. "It's still intact!" ' _It didn't break!_ ', she'd cried loudly. Katsuya mentally shook himself, before grinning down at the boy and pushing back past memories.

 

"Yep! What'd I tell y'? Wanna try for a third?"

 

He nodded. "Definitely!" The net stayed where it was, and Mokuba looked towards one of the fish in particular. "That one!"

 

Katsuya blinked; the one Mokuba pointed at was completely white, almost like...

 

Holding back a laugh at how a dragon was being compared to a goldfish right now, he nodded. "Alright! Let's move the net over... And..." Three... Two... One... "Gotcha!"

 

There was a splash, and the fish fell into the bowl just as the net broke. "YEAH!" As Katsuya handed the bowl over to get the fish bagged, Mokuba grinned- at least for a moment. The expression faltered as a cold feeling came over him, and Mokuba turned his eyes to the ground. He felt... He felt like he was abandoning his sister somehow, by doing this. Calling Katsuya 'brother', spending the first half of the summer with him... He stood there, grin falling further as his friend turned with the three fish. The blond looked at Mokuba a few moments, frowning.

 

"Hey," he said, leading the boy off to the side. "You alright?" He remained silent, the locket he'd bought almost two weeks ago hanging around his neck. The week before, he'd convinced Shizuka to help split his picture from the orphanage in two; the half with Seto's picture was in the one around his neck now. The other...was in what would be Seto's.

 

Eventually, Mokuba nodded. "Yeah," he said, putting up a smile. "I'm fine..."

 

The other snorted, shaking his head. No... No he wasn't alright, and he'd be damned if he let anything kill the happy mood he had. "Yeah righ'; cause you sound like a kicked puppy _all_ th' time..." As Mokuba merely turned his head down again, the blond sighed. "...This... This ain't abou..."

 

Mokuba nodded yet again. "Do you think it's bad," he asked honestly, slowly turning to look up at Katsuya. "That I can feel happy while Seto is sleeping like that?" He took a breath, before continuing quietly. "Does that... Does that make me a bad person?"

 

Heck... With everything else he'd done before... He was already messed up enough right? There was a small silence between the two, and for a moment Mokuba wondered if that meant he _was '_ bad'. But instead Katsuya balanced the bag with the fish in it on one arm, before pulling the boy close. "No... No it doesn'. Cause when it comes down to it," he said with that same caring, 'big brother' tone that he'd come to know again, "Th' fact that you're here an' wishin' for that one person t' be here, or t' even jus' know your here, shows that yah care that much. So if anythin', it makes you a better person than ever b'fore." Another bout of silence. And then...

 

"Thank you... Katsuya-nii. ...Do you think... If Seto-niisama was awake," he said, careful to avoid female honorifics in the crowd, "That he'd have come along..?"

 

"...Yeah," he said, wondering how he could believe what came out of his mouth. "I do." It would likely take an army, but... yeah. A few minutes and dollars later, the two were eating lunch and talking about better things as if nothing happened... But somehow, Mokuba decided, he felt a lot better now that everything was off his chest.

 

* * *

 

Sounds of drums filled the boats as they set off, the sun idling in the sky while they floated down the river. "Stay together," Akie was saying, arms laden with souvenirs from the day. Shizuka herself had a few packages, making Katsuya and Mokuba feel considerably less guilty about buying the mask and fans they each had in addition to the goldfish. Not to mention all the food they'd eaten; apparently, Mokuba had never had takoyaki, or even melon bread. He _definitely_ hadn't tried Okonomiyaki.

 

Needless to say this was a large shock for Katsuya, and he proceeded to load the poor kid with so much food that Mokuba was surprised he didn't explode. That didn't even cover the promise of getting a nabe to cook sukiyaki and oden in when they got home.

 

Now however, they were on the boats for the final procession of the festival for the day, watching as an old style play was put together before them. As to what this had to do with the festival or the parade, they didn't know. Whatever it was, Shizuka and Akie loved it apparently. The boys however, did not, and had so far been thumped upside the head multiple times for sneaking their monster fighters along (or in the current case, playing with a yo-yo that Katsuya had bought).

 

"OW!" The blond rubbed his head as Shizuka hit him again, and he scowled. "Come on, we aren't th' only ones doin this! We can't be, this play is just..." He cut off with a cough when his mom sent him a 'look', and he turned back to Shizuka. "Why are you so violent..." he whined, despite the 'thumping' being about as painful as a beanbag to the shoulder. All he could think was what happened to his quiet and shy little sister! It was unfair!

 

She frowned. "Because you aren't paying any attention! Do you even know what this play is about?" The girl turned to Mokuba as her older brother shrugged. "Either of you?"

 

"Er..." He shook his head, laughing nervously. Quite honestly... He didn't really like plays. At all. So he'd taken Katsuya up on his offer to play monster fighter instead. "No..."

 

The girl huffed, shaking her head. "Really..." She smiled, turning to the stage with an odd look that reminded Katsuya of one he'd seen Anzu get when she talked about a recent romance film she'd watched. The half dreamy tone didn't lighten the comparison. "It's the tale of Botan Dourou... A widowed man sees a beautiful woman with a small girl on obon, and falls in love... So, he approaches her, and vows to always be faithful, and they begin seeing each other at night!" As the boys began listening (It was more interesting when summed up), Shizuka continued. "But then one day, the man falls ill, and cannot see his love for a long time... And when he gets better, he is told that she has died..."

 

Katsuya blinked, frowning. "That kinda sucks..."

 

Beside him, Mokuba rolled his eyes. "'Sucks' isn't the word Katsuya-nii..."

 

They both paled, realizing that Shizuka was now growling at them.

 

"Hnnn... I'm not done yet!" As the pair nervously rubbed their heads, Shizuka resumed her story. "As I was saying... Later, he sees them again, and the woman tells him that she is still alive... They continue to see each other, but," she said, turning a moment as the stage cleared, "One night, the man's servants peer through a hole in his bedroom wall.. And to his horror, the man is making love to a skeleton, with a smaller skeleton sitting at the side!" As Katsuya instantly tensed at the mention of the undead, Mokuba grew considerably pale. "The servant goes to a priest, who places ofuda on the house to prevent the dead from entering... However, as time passes, the servants grow worried that their love sick master will die anyways.. So, they remove the ofuda, and allow the women entry once more. And in the next morning..." Shizuka leaned in, the boys visibly drawing back as she finished the tale. "They find him dead, entwined with the corpse with a radiant expression in his face!"

 

As Mokuba hurriedly threw his head back over the edge of the boat, Katsuya attempted (badly) to stop shuddering. "Nhhhh! You know I don' like horror stories!"

 

His sister scoffed, crossing her arms. "It's not just a horror, it's a romance!" How the fuck was that romantic! She scowled, turning to face the stage again. "Honestly! And you could at least pay attention to the plays after the money Mom paid to get us here!"

 

Katsuya froze. "Th... It cost a lot t' get on th' boat..?" The look he got told him all he needed to know, and as Mokuba steadied himself once again the blond quickly snapped his attention to the second play that was beginning. "Hey," Mokuba said, whispering so that he didn't end up a victim of Shizuka's hand. "I thought we were going to watch the lights as they came on..." Though the sun had set, it still wasn't dark; oranges and reds bled across the sky, and until then, none of the lights strung on the boats would light up.

 

He nervously leaned over slightly to whisper his answer. "Did'ya know that it cost my mom a lot t' get us here?" Without waiting for an answer, he continued. "Cause I didn'. And now, I feel really, really crappy for not watchin' the first one..." Regardless of how much he hated these things, it just wasn't right!

 

The boy shook his head. "That's what you say now, but if you had you'd probably have fainted as it was...and it sounds like most plays they're doing are going to be like that, too." There was a 'shh' from beside Mokuba, and he jumped. "...Ffff, I mind as well watch as well..."

 

Who knew, maybe it'd actually be ok. The actors came on the stage, introducing the name of the play; 'Sarayashiki', the Mansion of Dishes. The story, though supernaturally based, didn't quite get the same horrified response from Katsuya that Mokuba had expected it to bring. Heck, Katsuya found himself leaning forwards to rest his head on his hands, actually interested. It was...

 

Different...

 

* * *

 

She could remember watching a play.

 

No pieces had appeared since the others left. It had grown cold, so cold, for so long... Seto didn't know how much time had passed since she came to this place. She didn't know how long it had been since 'Mutt' and 'Mokuba' had gone. Even the warmth from the sun wasn't reaching her anymore, and besides her 'window', the darkness had become almost as dense and endless as it had when she first arrived. It was scaring her.

 

And she didn't like that.

 

"AAAA _AUUUR_!"

 

She threw the puzzle as far into the darkness as possible, falling to her knees in frustration. She felt small... Like a child, like she had before even entering the orphanage, like she had in the memory of the snow and the truck and the voice... _'Ka...Se...'_ That voice...

 

' _Ka..._ '

 

"Gh..." Seto clenched her fists, her body now even smaller than it had been when she first came to the room. She had made it so far... Why was it that once those voices were gone, she felt powerless? Why did she need those two to live in here? To feel? As she stared off into the distance where she threw the puzzle, she touched her face, confused. "...Why," she asked, frowning at the sound of her younger self's voice and the appearance of her now tiny, childish hands. "Why am I crying..?"

 

The girl looked over herself, still frowning as the salty tears clung to her face. She didn't cry... She never cried! So why...

 

...

 

It was lonely here...

 

...

 

She looked over at where she'd thrown the mess of a puzzle, still frowning. ...Where _were_ they? The girl continued to stare towards where she threw the puzzle, eventually gathering the pieces beside her and walking off to find it. She shouldn't have done that... That puzzle was... Important. She didn't know why. But it was, it was very, very important. Enough so that it was her only ticket out of here, her only way of knowing just what the hell was going on, just who she was...

 

The small glow of the puzzle appeared in the distance, but she still felt as cold as she had for the past and seemingly infinite amounts of time. Placing the pieces she had beside it, she picked the puzzle back up in her hands and sighed. One of the pieces would help, maybe. Even just for a moment. Seto rolled the puzzle around in her hands, looking for a happy memory. It would be pointless of course... No matter how many thoughts she drowned herself in, she never understood in the end, never connected completely to what was going on, and to make matters worse found herself feeling sick and distant when she got out of it. She couldn't really tell where she fit in them after all; she was always 'not there'.

 

And yet as her fingers traced around a piece for a few moments, she wanted nothing more than to see this one at the moment. She didn't see how it was happy; she was young at the time... Too young to understand anything going on, and honestly she was surprised she 'remembered' something from that time at all. There was no 'Mokuba', no 'Mutt'... She was with two people at a play of sorts, the sounds of festivities in the air. Because that was what it was. A festival she decided, as she fingered the puzzle-locked piece. She didn't know what festival it was, or what it was for of course. And honestly, she didn't really remember much more about it at all. But she remembered the play. It had started with...

 

A lady in waiting, strung in a twisted political mess.

 

* * *

 

There was once a beautiful woman named Okiku, who was engaged to marry the retainer of a man in line to become the next lord of Himeji Castle as best as Mokuba could tell- it involved a trail of politics that grew rather convoluted, but ended with only one important matter. Through the politics, another retainer with hopes to secure succession for himself, would force Okiku to do his bidding.

 

Or so he would plan. Tetsuzan as the man was named, would steal one of ten precious plates due to be gifted to the shogun by Okiku's future in-laws, and following the act call Okiku to his chamber. He would attempt to seduce the woman first- but upon her refusal, due to her prior engagement, reveal the box with the missing plate. Blaming her for the theft he would repeat his demand that she be his mistress and aid in the murder of her fiance, only for her to again refuse.

 

Even through the beatings from a wooden sword.

 

Even through the torture of being lowered and raised into a well, and beaten still. Until at last, her refusals became too much for Tetsuzan, and she was slain upon the spot...dropped into the well.

 

The play ended with Okiku's ghost- counting upward from one to nine, as the spirit rose for her vengeance.

 

It was a sad, grim, and for all their lack of horrified response, an eerie tale indeed. As Mokuba turned away from the stage to look at the now dark sky and river waters, he was joined by an equally morose Katsuya. The pair looked out at the lit boats in silence for a moment, unsure of what to say. "...That story," the blond eventually said, not moving his eyes from the water. "...Did it seem... Did it remind yah of anythin'?" Not waiting for Mokuba's response, Katsuya looked down, frowning. "Cause... I got a really weird feelin'..."

 

The boy nodded. "Yeah... Me too..." It wasn't as though the reasons lined up, of course. The woman in their mind was far from a 'lady in waiting' after all. But somehow the idea of a woman tormented by the threat of what she desired most, while resiliently refusing the 'easy path' through torture if it meant betraying those desires, was not an idea that could easily be separated from _her_. Looking out at the ocean, Mokuba felt his stomach grow cold. Maybe... It was a sign. Like an omen...

 

Seto wasn't waking up yet. And the way the Big Five was talking to Pegasus was scaring him...

 

Everyday in the house, it felt like someone more similar to Gozaburo was watching him rather than the familiar, calm staff he'd hired before and it scared him. A lot. And if anyone found out that he held the key to where his sister had hidden the most important information on the company... If anyone of those fighting over it actually claimed their goal...

 

He turned to Katsuya, mentally steeling himself. "Katsuya-nii," he said after a few minutes, before pulling something out of his yukata. "I want to give you something."

 

He blinked, turning to the boy. "Nh... You wanna what?" He raised an eyebrow, before shaking his head. "I don' need it, whatever it is... Sides, I've probably caused enough problems for yah as is." Presents were not something he deserved after all that.

 

Mokuba shook his head, grabbing his friend's hand and placing something in it before whispering. "I didn't ask Katsuya-nii," he said in a tone oddly reminiscent of his older sister. "I said I 'want' to. And I will. Take it, and make sure no one sees you with it... Because this is really important to me, ok?"

 

The teen stared, fist clenched around the metallic object. "...What..." He swallowed, before tightening his hold on it and nodding. "Alrigh'. I'll keep it then... I don' know what's so important about it but..." Katsuya nodded, before slipping the item into his wallet without looking at it. Whatever it was... "I'll do it."

 

"Thank you..." The boy sighed with relief, as though having rid himself of a great burden. "Really... Thank you, Katsuya-nii." He smiled, before turning with a jump as a loud crack came through the air. "Ah... Fireworks!" The people on the boat turned, following the boys gaze as the empty boats ahead of them were set ablaze to join the sight of the fireworks on the river.

 

"Woaaaaah..." It'd been a long time since he'd seen fireworks like this. Mokuba's reaction told him it'd been longer for him. Their eyes grew wide as they watched, a grin appearing on Katsuya's face despite the depressing mood from the last play. Flare upon flare entered the sky, some falling in a golden rain, and others spiralling in a twisted shower of glittering sparks. Mokuba as well gained an expression of awe, as a particularly 'excited' shot of white light spiraled up into the sky before exploding into a rain equally as bright. "It's..." He stood, gripping the rail on the boat as he watched. "It's amazing! This is great!" Neesama would love...

 

He bit his lip. Neesama would love this, or so he wanted to believe. So then... Instead of moping about neesama missing this... He watched the show, a now relieved and confident smile on his face as he and Katsuya's family stared with him. Instead of moping, and crying about things... He would make sure that next year, Neesama saw this!

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bon Odori (or Obon) is a longer festival, which takes place on the 7th Lunar Month; this results in places like Tokyo celebrating during July, while various other regions of Japan celebrate in August. For the sake of accuracy, this means that the 'month long trip' Mokuba and Jonouchi took runs a little longer than a month; running from July 3rd through to August 12th. (Suffice to say they only remained for the first day of the Bon Odori festival, and likely extended the trip at Shizuka and Akie's insistence rather than planning for it, as Tanabata was ignored in lieu of Mokuba's own birthday)
> 
> Curiously, while seeking names utilized with the Rapids and Man kanji (which form 'Seto'), only one result appeared- and it wasn't even Seto. It was 'Setoka'. ...Suffice to say I took the more traditional route of looking at each character's name reading options to create a birth name from there. It is however, worth noting that the old name exists as a 'female' name; it simply uses differing kanji under typical circumstances.


	15. Chapter 13 | Conversations With 'Okiku'

By the time the next morning had come after their extended vacation, Mokuba was feeling guiltily torn about leaving Osaka. Boarding the train with their bags (+ three carefully watched goldfish), he froze slightly as Akie and Shizuka both insisted on giving the boy a hug before he left. The awkward embrace was mercifully released after a few seconds, the boy fleeing for the train as the women moved on to Katsuya.

 

"Mom..." The blond sighed, unable to really move with Mokuba's bags under his arm. "Mom I'm 16, I really don' think a hug 's nessec- Un!" He was cut off as the woman pulled him close, shaking slightly.

 

"You've grown so much..." Katsuya didn't know what to say, feeling a little awkward as his mother spoke. "And you've made good friends, and I'm so proud..." She stepped back, motioning over to Mokuba slightly. "I don't know who he is, or how you two met, but what you're doing is good. That boy... He looks much better than when you came Katsuya. So keep doing it, alright?"

 

He stared, trying to keep his confusion from his face. "Mom... I..." There was a shout from the train, where Mokuba was standing. "Shit! I gotta go.. Uh..." He looked at his mom a moment, giving a quick hug to Shizuka before running for the train. "Love yah mom! Shizuka-chan! I'll see you again!"

 

Boarding the train and taking his seat, he found himself watching them until the vehicle pulled out and they disappeared from sight completely. His mom was... _Proud_ of him. He didn't even know why. He didn't even know what he was doing that was 'good', all he'd done was take Mokuba along for a summer trip, try to cheer the kid up, tell him they'd bring his sister when she woke... And that couldn't be it. Hell that had to be far from it, so then what was it? Leaning back on the seat as the boy beside him stared out the window with wide eyes again, he had to smile despite his personal confusion. Well...

 

If there was anything he had learned... Seto was lucky to have a little brother like this. And when she woke up Katsuya thought, he'd probably miss filling in for her. But it'd be worth the smile all the same.

 

* * *

 

It came as a bit of a shock to say the least, when Katsuya came back to Tokyo to find that Honda as well was gone for the summer. Though this would make things easier in terms of keeping the topic of Shizuka out of Honda's ears. Anzu had apparently stayed, and had spent a good deal of her time with Yugi (Though the boy expressed his worries about Anzu's love for his 'other half' when sharing stories of their trip to an amusement park). While she had had the first month off work much like Katsuya, she was apparently going to spend the rest of it with a summer job. Personally, Katsuya wondered why she was so intent on getting a job when she wasn't even allowed to have one...

 

As it were, despite being in the same city as him, seeing Yugi became a bit tricky once the 'work month' kicked off. Katsuya spent most of his days asleep thanks to his 'night shift' duty; his sleep cycle would be completely screwed over by the time summer was over, he was certain. Heck, sleeping in until 1 in the afternoon was weird, and half the time he was still in the chair he used to keep watch over Kaiba. There were upsides, he supposed- he certainly had the afternoon to spend with his friends after all, and by the end of the month he was certain he'd have the patience of a damn _tortoise._ That was far from a skill he had now however, and it was time to enjoy one of his afternoons.

 

In this case by taking a trip to the school's pool, which was open to the public for the summer. Katsuya shook a few persistent droplets of water from his hair, stretching as he left the school with Yugi. The kid had disappeared into the building for sometime after they stopped swimming; it was weird, but he came back looking as happy as ever, so he figured it was nothing to fret about. Walking down the street to Burger World, he grinned as he looked down at his friend. "Pbbbttt... Man Yugi, I think you could go t' Okinawa and still avoid tanning!"

 

His friend pouted, crossing his arms. "It's not my fault," he said rather stubbornly as they entered the restaurant. "I just don't tan well!" That was an understatement.

 

He continued laughing, grabbing a booth near the window with a grin. "Whatever y' say Yugi! I'm jus' saying, it's pretty hard t' stay outside tha' long without getting at least a lil' dark!"

 

"Psh! You were outside for an entire month though, your tan doesn't count!" As the boy grabbed a menu and flipped through, he turned to glance at Katsuya a few times. "Which reminds me... Where were you Jonouchi-kun?"

 

The teen blinked, grabbing a menu as well. He'd tanned 'slightly' since the trip to Osaka... It'd probably vanish in a few weeks thanks to his current job however. "Nh, visitin' my mom an' sis... Nothin' big."

 

Apparently, it was very big. "You have a sister," Yugi asked with a look of curiosity. He paused, before recalling the conversation before summer start. "That's right! You mentioned her before! How old is she?" Oh, so now that Honda wasn't here he was going to be all ears? Eh...

 

Yugi had his eyes on Anzu anyway. So Katsuya frowned. "Fourteen, an' I'm only tellin' yah cause I know you're goin' after Anzu." And that was only something he knew because of their earlier conversation on Anzu specifically. ...As well as, he supposed, a few obvious looks from the shorter to the taller. His scowl deepened and he quickly added, "Don' tell Honda, or I'll have teh take up kendo an' buy a sword." Or maybe he could just skip to beating the crap out of him...

 

The boy laughed, shaking his head. "Alright, I won't tell... Hey, Jonouchi-kun..." Katsuya blinked, turning as Yugi continued. "What's that around your neck?" He looked down, before picking up the small pendant-box he'd bought in Osaka. He spotted it at the train station... Supposedly, whatever you put inside it would end up stuck on the sides, and create a pattern on the box itself. He didn't know how it worked, but it was still interesting to see the outline of the key that Mokuba had given him appear on the plastic just faintly.

 

Even if it took a few hours in the sun. "Oh this? Jus' somethin' I found in Osaka... Nothin' big." Katsuya turned as a waitress arrived, before grinning. "I'll take th' double cheese burger wi' iced tea!"

 

Yugi raised an eyebrow, before turning to the waitress. "The same for me, but milk instead ok?" As the waitress left (Laughing as she muttered something about milk and height), he turned back to look at Katsuya. Or rather, Katsuya's 'key-box'. "Hn... It looks cool. Anyways... Hey, Jonouchi-kun?"

 

The teen blinked, having been staring at the pendant for a short bit. "Hn? Yea Yug'?"

 

He fidgeted slightly, before speaking. "Well... I... I'm not really sure but..." The boy fingered his puzzle for a moment, before making an odd expression. "I think the other me wants to talk to you..." At Katsuya's confused expression, he shrugged. "Don't ask me how it works! I've never even met him, I'm just going by what I feel!"

 

"I didn't say..." Though he had definitely been thinking it. He shrugged, shaking his head with a grin. "Eh, what th' heck. Go for it!" Apparently this was all the 'other Yugi' needed, as the moment Yugi closed his eyes, the boy visibly changed. For a brief moment, he blinked, before coughing. "Er... Hey Yug'! Other Yug... Uh..." Huh. Now that he thought about it, what did you call him if...

 

'Yugi' smirked, laughing. "It's our body isn't it? Just 'Yugi' is fine." As Katsuya nodded, his smirk dropped. "Actually, I had a question... I'm surprised the other me knew that." The blond shrugged, watching as their food arrived before taking a sip of his iced tea.

 

"Nhhh... Yug's like that. You're like... Ahh never mind. So what was it?" Honestly, he wasn't even going to try anymore.

 

He crossed his arms, leaning back in the seat. "You see... I was hoping to ask about Kaiba." As Katsuya tensed, he continued. "His condition... The other me didn't see him in the hospital, and is quite worried..." Ohhhh that's right... They never told Yugi and the others about that.

 

"Ah..." Katsuya nodded, understanding. "That..." Coughing, he took another sip of his drink before continuing. "Y' see, he kinda got outta th' coma... But technically, h's still sleepin', so we took 'm to th' house t' look after 'm there."

 

The teen nodded, eyes shut with thought before he smiled. "Thank you, Jonouchi. That's all I wanted to ask," he said as Katsuya sighed, before continuing. "On the topic of Kaiba at least." It figured... Then again, switching out for two seconds to ask a question would be kinda silly. "Can I ask you something, Jonouchi?"

 

Katsuya blinked, swallowing nervously. "Er..." Coughing again, he nodded and grinned. "Sure! Ask whatever yeh want!" No time like the present... Or something.

 

Yugi also smiled, before continuing. "The other, original Yugi has been noticing a few things about you... However, he didn't want to say anything." At Katsuya's raised eyebrow, he went on. "Specifically, he's wondering if there's someone you like... Because you haven't been yourself lately." Idly taking a small sip of Yugi's milk before deciding to leave it be, his expression became more serious. "Personally, I have to agree, though I'm not completely sure about the reasoning. Is something wrong, Jonouchi?"

 

At the mention of 'someone he liked', Katsuya found himself going slightly red. Someone he liked... Someone... Damn it, the only girls he knew 'closely' were either Anzu (no), related (NO), and...

 

Kaiba.

 

( _NOOOOOOO.._.!)

 

Considering those options, he almost chocked on his burger. "N- K! Y-You wanna know if I've got a crush on someone?" He drew back, shaking his head. "W-What th' heck kinda question is that..."

 

"Ahahaha! Apparently a relevant one, Jonouchi. And no... I asked if something was 'wrong'." Yugi smirked, before shaking his head. "I think I'll let the 'real' Yugi take things from here though..." The boy opened his eyes, revealed as the 'original' once more. While Katsuya stared slightly as he chewed his food, the boy smiled.

 

Now that the topic was 'confirmed', this was 'his' territory after all. "So..." He grabbed his milk, taking a sip before continuing. " _IS_ there someone?" Stop contradicting yourself... Your other self... Aw screw it.

 

Katsuya scowled, angrily taking a sip from his iced tea. "Nhhhh... How'm I supposed tah know, I don' even get what yah meant by 'actin' different'! An'... An' stop switchin'," he added lamely, before going back to his burger. The boy tilted his head slightly, before smiling.

 

"That's the first time I've tried that Jonouchi-kun... Anyways." He grinned, taking a sip of his milk before answering. "Well... You seem more 'alert'. More aware I guess. Like..." Yugi paused, looking for the right words. "Well, less headstrong and more, I don't know... More like an adult."

 

He frowned. "What th' heck is that even s'pposed tah mean..." More 'aware' and less 'headstrong'? What was wrong with charging in and getting things done! ...Then again... When was the last time he'd legitimately done that? (He felt rusty now...)

 

"I don't know, it's hard to explain now that I'm actually putting it in words!" As Yugi panicked for a moment, he quickly regained his composure to frown. "And you aren't getting out of my question on a girlfriend that easy!" He smiled, leaning forwards slightly. "Go on, tell me! Whoever it is, I'll be happy for you!" Of course he would, but there wasn't anyone worth mentioning...

 

...Well... Mostly... The blond continued scowling, finishing off his burger before speaking. "I'm tellin' yah, I don't have a crush on anyone!" At Yugi's unimpressed and disbelieving stare, he grumbled. The downside to the entire conversation was that it was only bringing one woman to mind when he put thought to it. A certain 'vegetative' one. "Hnnng... Man, I dunno... Probably isn't even interested in anything outside herself..." He still didn't have a crush on her though. That would be silly, and likely suicidal.

 

...She was, however, hot, he would give her that. He was never saying that to her face given how suicidal that would be, but he could at least concede the compliment in his thoughts. As Katsuya muttered this under his breath, Yugi beamed. "Aha! So there is someone! What is she like? And what's her name?" What the-

 

What kind of hearing did he have? He tensed, scowling. Damn it, he'd fallen right into the little guy's trap! "Hn! A lot like someone else we know, that's for sure..." Shit... No escaping this now, but what to say? Now that he thought, he didn't know what Seto's original name was. So he couldn't use that as a cover at the moment, unless... "An we never met personally, so I don' really know her name well...” Unless he pulled the 'distant crush' card. That would surely keep Yugi invested! “Yah won't believe what kanji it uses though," he added with a grin. Might as well have fun with this, after all.

 

Yugi also grinned, leaning in further. "What? What ones?"

 

"The very same ones as a certain ice cold CEO, tha's who!" Katsuya quickly regretted mentioning Seto again, as Yugi's face fell for a moment. Oh.. Right... Yugi did the mind crush thing on Seto and...

 

Ahhhhhh he wasn't doing well was he. However, the boy quickly regained a more cheery look as he drifted into thought. "'Se' and 'Hito' then...There aren't many readings for that that could be considered feminine. I can only think of one myself...and normally it has a third character," the boy laughed. As he pondered this, he looked back up at Katsuya. "It must be an uncommon reading...does she go to our school?" At the blond's 'no' ('Sorry Yug, can't tell yah the truth there' he thought), he frowned. "Well there goes that option... If you'd misread it, and missed a character, I'd have said 'Setoka'...but after that, the ones I think of first for options are more like 'Tane', or 'Sen'..." Honestly, it was amazing that the guy even thought of those off the top of his head. Then again, Yugi had a fair amount of skill when it came to things he was invested in. It left him with no real idea of what the name was of course, but that wasn't the point of the conversation anyway if he thought about it.

 

He shrugged. "Well, not like it's a crush in any case...” the blond insisted, deflecting once again. “I honestly can't stand anythin' that reminds me of Kaiba myself..." He scowled, crossing his arms. "Can't believe he's related t' Mokuba, how can such an asshole have Mokuba for a brother..."

 

Yugi appeared to be fighting not to remind Katsuya that Mokuba had also tried to kill him, and instead sighed. "Well, you're sure acting like it at least..." Since when was he the expert on this?

 

He rolled his eyes. "What are yah Yug', a girl? I don' know this lady, I don' know what she likes! ...And I don' like her," the blond added with a smirk, getting up to pull out his money for the meal. "I'll figure it out myself alrigh? Let yah know how it turns out, 'k?"

 

The boy nodded, pulling out his own money before turning to look at Katsuya as he left. "Hey, try asking her out ok?" At those words, he did nothing but grin, nod, and hold back a laugh with all he could. Yeah... Ask Seto Kaiba on a date. (What was this, he didn't even have a crush...)

 

Cause that would work well even without the damned coma in the way, right?

 

* * *

 

A few days had passed since that conversation at burger world. Katsuya idly hung up his things and took a seat in Seto's room, stretching slightly. Work time again, he thought with a yawn. And as usual...

 

Nothing. Was happening.

 

It really figured with night shift and all, and really he wasn't going to wish for excitement... Not after what happened the last time he did that. Katsuya leaned back on the chair he had in the room, idly staring at the gun Mokuba had given him with a raised eyebrow. Seriously, he could barely shoot the broad side of a barn, even with all the training he was being force-fed; if anything happened, he was definitely using his fists. Katsuya looked around the empty (Well, mostly empty) room, silently glad that there was no audio on the cameras. In fact, there was no audio surveillance in Seto's room at all... The only reason there was surveillance in the bedroom portion was for the fact that she was currently comatose (kinda).

 

As it was, the washroom didn't have any surveillance for fairly good reasons. After all, as Mokuba had mentioned later in private there would be a chance of the footage of Seto's body being used against the woman, given the situation with barely any of the staff being trustworthy. As it was her breasts were barely concealed by either a large plush blanket, or the general openness of her pajama shirt. "Things have gotten real complex, huh Seto-chan..."

 

The blond kept his face turned away from the camera, focusing on Seto herself. Oddly enough, by doing this he would probably keep more information private. Honestly though, he just felt awkward saying anything without looking at the target. Idly, he played with something he'd worked on earlier with clay. After leaving burger world, he'd gotten an idea about the 'not-crush' he'd had to chat about to appease his best friend... And seeing how Seto wasn't likely going to be the type to take presents (Let alone from him), it was better now than never.

 

Even if her birthday wasn't until October.

 

"Never thought I'd find myself caught up in a company conspiracy..." He snorted, looking over the clay sculpture he'd somehow managed to make. It still shocked him really... But somehow, he'd managed to not make the clay 'Blue Eyes' look like mush. In fact he thought as he looked it over again, he didn't do half bad! Katsuya looked the dragon over, thinking over what Yugi had said earlier. A crush... He didn't seriously have a crush did he? "Nah," he found himself muttering out loud. Thinking about the other didn't mean that kind of thing after all...

 

"Though yeh are pretty hot..." he supposed. He looked up from the dragon, leaning back in his chair as he looked at Seto's slumbering form. "Course now that that's been said, this is kinda awkward..." He laughed, before quickly quieting down as he remembered that the guards would come in if they heard even that. "You do know tha' though, right," he continued, quietly speaking to the non-responsive body. "It might've only been for a moment, but th' you that I saw..." Ok, stop thinking of that... The blond sighed, before smiling wryly. "It ain't fair," he muttered, placing the dragon on the side table lest his fiddling break a wing off. "Because of some kinda issue in th' past, no one can see that side 'f you... I don' even know if you'd wanna show that side now."

 

Certainly didn't seem like that. Idly, he shook himself mentally. He was good as talking to a corpse right now, damn it. Good as falling in love with a- Ok, there was no way it was going that far. He wasn't 'in love' with anyone here, and definitely not Seto Kaiba. ...Right? "Yah know, Yug' questioned me about crushes t'day," the teen said idly, eyes shifting to the ceiling. "Come t' think, my sister said the same thing while we were in Osaka..." He fiddled with his 'key' pendant, before looking over at Seto again. "'S where your brother got that pendant you know. You're lucky t' have someone like that." Was he more adult? Would he say this kind of stuff if he never met Mokuba, never got this job? "Like, _really_ lucky," he added with a quiet laugh. "Seriously, I don' think anyone else would've held out this long with the facade you're pullin'."

 

Why was he still talking?

 

"Can you ev'n hear me, Seto-chan?" There was no sarcasm in the CEO's name this time, no sign of Katsuya even forcing himself to say 'chan' just to annoy the woman should she hear him. "'M I talkin to a corpse here..?" Katsuya sighed, adjusting his seat in the chair. "...I don' know if y' knew we were gone... If y' knew where we were... But if yer in there, shoutin' at me right now, go ahead." He gave a wry smirk, before continuing in the seemingly one sided conversation. "Prolly deserve it righ' now... But yah know, if y' aren't awake by th' time we go next year, we're draggin' yah in the wheel chair, got it?"

 

Katsuya laughed slightly, before sighing. He tried to laugh again, only for it die as fast as he brought it up. "Hey, Seto-chan," he said quietly, looking out the window from the corner of his eyes. "Did y' know? Talkin' teh Yug' earlier, and he thinks I'm different... Like... 'More adult' different. Hah!" Again, the laughter died quickly, and he continued playing around with the key-box in his hand. "I can't be tha' different right? Still stupid enough teh talk to someone who can't hear me after all..." Katsuya looked at Seto's face, an odd look seemingly mixed with guilt and worry on his face. "You're really beautiful, you know that," he finally whispered, flushing red as he realized what he said. The words sank in alongside a million internal protests, and Katsuya rubbed his head. This was an _Anzu_ thing, a 'girls in mushy romance films' thing, not a... Guys on night shift thing!

 

Then again, with all the weird shit going on in his life this year, it was likely inevitable. How many guys ended up in his shoes anyway? Coughing, he nonetheless continued, fairly confident that no one could hear him right now as it was. After all... He might as well finish what he started before he lost the courage right? Or something like that...

 

"I mean it. You're really... Heck," he said with a harsh and half-hearted laugh, "I bet if you didn' end up with Gozaburo you'd 'ave had yer pick! ...Not that yeh probably don' already..." Still red, he turned away slightly, coughing again. "I... I mean... Yah obviously don' want someone like me, given yer usual comments..." Course, Kaiba was a bitch to everyone, so really... Katsuya sighed, shaking his head. ' _Ask her out_ ', Yugi had said. Yeah. Yeah that would go well, without considering the fact that he'd been denying this until he was blue in the face fifteen minutes ago. 'Hey Kaiba, wanna go out? Sure it'll mean lying about your sexuality unless you stop hiding your gender, and the scandal would probably get the company plummeting regardless of support thanks to old coots on the stock market but it's fine, really!' Yeaaaah...

 

...Well, he still had some courage left, after all.

 

"Yah know," he said, somewhat distantly, "We should go out sometime... Like... Not 'out' out obviously, but more like..." He waved his hand trying to find the words. "Like... Watch a movie here 'r somethin'. I dunno..." Rubbing his head, he finally just snorted. "Y; know what, ferget it. It's prolly better that yah can't hear me," he muttered, still a rather brilliant shade of crimson. "Means yah can't call me an' idiot and kick me outta th' room..." The blond looked over at the clock, sighing. Time for shifts to switch. "Probably an' idiot for fallin' for yah to begin with" he continued under his breath, grabbing the gun he'd placed on the ground to put it back in the holster. "Given tha' yah hate me enough as it is. Don' have a clue why I _don't_ , tha's for sure..." Idly, he attempted to find something else to talk about, eyes falling on the dragon he'd sculpted. Better that than how much he was going to internally curse Yugi for getting him to confess this in the first place.

 

"...Y' know," he said, dropping his pendant for the moment. "I don' actually know anything about yah... Prolly not surprisin, but it makes it hard teh get y' an early birthday present." Katsuya smirked, giving another laugh. "Pretty sure yah ain't inta yo-yos... Not like I am at least. They got pretty popular lately, so I've been trying my hand at some tricks myself..." There was another laugh, and he rolled his eyes as he imagined Seto's sarcastic laugh at the next comment. "Course... Th' only one I know is th' dog walk righ' now..." He scowled, answering to an unheard and imagined retort from the woman. "But don' think that means anythin' to yer 'mutt' comments! I ain't a dog, got it!"

 

Another sigh. "Anyways," he said, leaning forward in his chair. "I guess what with all I don' know, it figures I'd end up making one of your stupid dragons..." Katsuya snorted, shaking his head. "...Least no one died f'r this one." There was a knock on the door, signalling the shift change. Katsuya looked over at the clock- Six AM... Talking sure did pass the time rather fast. Given that he felt as though he'd only been here for about an hour. He turned to the door, giving one last look to Seto. "...G'night, Seto-chan..." And with that he walked over, switching places with the next guard to get some sleep. "See yah later."

 

As he left the room, he could have sworn he heard someone say thank-you... But that voice was... Kaiba's normal one... Wasn't it?

 

* * *

 

The warmth was back. And so were the voices.

 

_'Nee-sama,'_ Mokuba was saying. ' _I'm so sorry neesama, that we were gone for so long...'_ He was back... That was all that mattered wasn't it? He and the other one, the Mutt. Katsuya. Seto tensed slightly, as her 'window' opened again. It was still blurred... Fogged over for a seemingly indefinite amount of time. However even through the fog, she could see the source of 'Mokuba's voice.

 

"You..." She frowned, sighing. All it was was a blur of black and peach. "I can't see you..." Nothing... She couldn't see anything.

 

' _Nee-sama... I'm going to give you this. A piece of the puzzle for your heart, and something to always remember me by if I leave again._ ' A small light appeared as the boy said this, and the woman tensed. What was... She frowned. How did he even know that she was in here, putting a puzzle together? That she was missing pieces? In the distance, something appeared to be 'falling', and she walked over to see what it was. "A necklace..." There was a clattering sound as a small pendant fell, clasped shut. It bore the same image of the back of a Duel Monster's card, though the pendant itself was a little smaller. Seto reached forwards, clicking it open before gasping. "This is..."

 

A small boy with... Black hair and blue eyes. This was... ' _It's from the orphanage,'_ Mokuba continued. ' _I have the side with you in it on mine. Wake up soon, nee-sama... I miss you._ ' This was Mokuba... She held it close, smiling. This was what he looked like. And she would never forget that, not like when she had seen him in the puzzle. "..Ah..." The pendant glowed, and a piece of the puzzle appeared. "This is..." The form the girl held at the moment was still small. The form she had in the memory of the festival to be specific. Yet as she held the piece in one hand however, and put it into place in the puzzle, she thought something changed... She had no time to ponder this though, as she was distracted by the memories she had that were now becoming linked together.

 

"Mokuba..." Her eyes widened as fogged faces became clear, names became more than jumbled kanji, and sights and places gained a time and date. Situations were cleared, and the small shadow she saw in those memories became a visible person. Seto dropped the puzzle piece, ignoring the clattering noise it gave off as it hit the ground. "Otouto..." The message from the first memory... The cold one, with the truck...

 

She could hear it now.

 

_'Ka....se...ri...'_

 

Hear his final words, flashing through her mind as she watched all the things she had done to the boy in the photograph.

 

_'Protect... Mokuba... Protect... Your brother...'_

 

Tears streamed down her face as she gripped her puzzle, sincerely glad that no one could hear her cries. Mokuba... Mokuba Mokuba _Mokuba Mokuba..!_

 

How could she have done those things? How could she have led her brother to do those things? How could she have done those things to _him_? "I'm sorry..." She shook, holding the puzzle close as her 'window' finally closed up. "I'm so sorry...So sorry..." She muttered this over and over, each time growing quieter until fading into silence. She felt the warmth of the sun disappear, soft hands bringing her beneath the warmth of a blanket. It was a distant touch- more of a side effect of the temperatures. But she felt it.

 

Seto stood up to look herself over, regaining her composure. The woman quickly frowned however, as she continued to examine the form her 'heart' had chosen. "I've never looked like this," she muttered to herself, now restored to the 'age' she was before. Unlike then however, where her outfit matched the age, she was still wearing the same yukata her younger self had. "Hmp..." She glared at the puzzle, eyes narrowed. "What are you up to..."

 

The cluster of gold gave off an odd sheen, as though laughing at her in response.

 

_'Hey,_ ' a voice said, Seto turning as she recognized it. Hn... So it was 'that time' again; the 'Mutt' had a set schedule it seemed. ' _Evenin' Seto-chan~_ '

 

The woman growled, answering regardless of the knowledge that she would remain unheard. "Stop calling me that mutt..." The voice ignored her of course, continuing. She ignored most of what he said anyway, given that it was only fair. It was rather easy to do, given that he was keeping himself occupied with something most of the times he was there. Seto imagined that a lot of time must have been passing... But for some reason it appeared to pass much quicker for her, while she was in 'this place'.

 

Abruptly however, she jumped as she caught the tail end of what the Mutt was saying. ' _...Though yeh are pretty hot...'_ She blushed, before scowling.

 

"That Mutt..." 'Hot'? Was that supposed to be a compliment? From what she could tell from the memories, she wasn't supposed to look 'hot', or at least not by the definitions of a heterosexual man! She was supposed to look male! Being 'hot' in his terms would mean the opposite! Moron...

 

Looking down over herself, she had to sneer. "Though I certainly can't fault the comment right now..." The fact was the yukata from younger years didn't help her image at all. Ignoring the comment on a memory she had yet to reclaim (A memory she was not looking forward to regaining), she frowned. Katsuya was still speaking- it could almost be called rambling even. _Now_ what was he talking about... A 'side' she had hidden? What side? This side? The one that seemed to be refusing to leave from her past in this place, which she buried safe away for the sake of her brother?

 

Seto froze, eyes wide. How did she know that, then? How did she know that she 'hid' because of Mokuba? Before she could delve further into those thoughts Katsuya's voice continued to sound around her.

 

' _Yah know, Yugi questioned me about crushes t'day..._ ' She rolled her eyes. Oh please, the Mutt couldn't possibly have... ' _Come t' think,_ ' the voice continued, ' _My sister said th' same thing while we were in Osaka...'_ Lovely.

 

"Tch," she muttered, crossing her arms as she turned 'away' from the voice. "You 'would' fall in love with someone who wasn't speaking to you I bet." Even if she didn't remember who he specifically was, it seemed to fit... The Mutt was enough of an idiot from what she could tell.

 

' _S where your brother got that pendant you know.'_ Was it now? Well... That was new. The voice

continued on, oblivious to her listening as usual. ' _You're lucky t' have someone like that,_ ' Katsuya was saying, voice kept quiet as it usually was in recent times. He didn't sound as gratingly annoying when it wasn't loud actually. She liked it.

 

Far more tolerable this way. _'Like really lucky_.' Hmp!

 

"...I know that."

 

She did now at least. She wished she'd known sooner quite frankly... Still Seto thought as she turned back around to look at the remaining pieces of her puzzle, she knew that something was missing. 'Kaseri'... The man in her memory had called her that, but she heard nothing but 'Seto' all day. What was her name, if it could not be one or the other... What was it? Her memories were fragmented, and all she had to grasp were straws. Even when they were literally presented before her she couldn't find the answer, and it was just so...

 

The woman scowled, biting her lip. If they could just give her her _name_! ' _Can you ev'n hear me, Seto-chan?_ ' "Of course I can you moron," she muttered, glaring at nothing in particular. ' _M I talkin to a corpse here..?_ ' Seto snapped, turning 'towards' the voice with a snarl. "Don't even begin to think of me as something so pathetic, Mutt!" To her surprise, the next response seemed oddly like an answer... Or at least an honest attempt to change the subject. ' _I don' know if yah knew we were gone...'_ Of course she did... ' _If yah knew where we were...'_ Of course she didn't, they never told her... ' _But if yer in there, shoutin' at me right now, go ahead._ ' "I'm not shouting," she muttered under her breath, looking down at her puzzle again. ' _Prolly deserve it righ' now..._ ' "I'm not..." ' _But yah know,_ ' "...Shouting..." _'If yah aren't awake by th' time we go next year, we're draggin yah in th' wheelchair, got it!_ '

 

"I'M AWAKE!" Seto's cries echoed around the room, her face livid as she shouted at the voice, the mutt. All these hours, days, weeks in this place, this terrible place where time didn't even pass... Listening as people spoke around her, begging for her to do something that she couldn't do, no matter how hard she wanted to! "I'M HERE! _AND I'M LISTENING_!" No response. Nothing... "SAY SOMETHING! _ANYTHING!_ " Just talk to her as though she was there and listening instead of as a bucket to spill someones soul in... There was room for only one soul in here after all damn it...

 

The woman shook, falling to her knees. Degrading, degrading, her mind echoed that her actions were nothing but degrading and she didn't even care anymore. No one was listening, no one could hear her scream. It wasn't like in the memories where she could simply say something and it was done, or say nothing and bottle up her rage.

 

Chuckling echoed around the room; but Katsuya's laughter was forced, and she knew it. ' _Hey, Seto-chan,_ ' he was saying, still quiet. ' _Did yah know? Talkin' teh Yug' earlier, and he thinks I'm different. ...Like... 'More adult' different. Hah!_ ' As another bout of forced laughter echoed around her, she scoffed, turning her head down. "You are 'different', moron... But not 'adult' different, that's for sure." Or was he? It was hard to picture the Mutt as even more immature than her memories of him. ' _I can't be tha' different right?_ ' Had...

 

Had he heard her? She looked up again, eyes wide. Was it possible that... Somehow... Seto's expression of shock quickly died to be replaced with disappointment, followed by annoyance as the voice continued.

 

' _Still stupid enough teh talk to someone who can't hear me after all..._ ' No no no no NO! She was not a wall! "WILL YOU LISTEN," she finally roared, fists clenched as the pent up frustrations of her current prison finally caved in around her. "LISTEN! STOP CALLING ME A CORPSE! STOP CALLING ME DEAD! I'M STILL HERE," she shouted, face red as she raged to nothing but darkness. " _I'M STILL ALIVE!_ " Always alive... Always..

 

Alive...

 

Nothing would change that. She wouldn't let anything change that, she wouldn't die in here...

 

' _You're really beautiful, you know that?'_ What? Seto's anger filled expression softened, her eyes wide with confusion at the statement. Beautiful..? No one ever called her that, no one ever even approached her, disguise or not, to say that. Then again a small voice in the back of her mind, the same one that had constantly told her she could easily just hop through the 'window' to escape, told her. Then again, you never let them near, did you?

 

Beautiful... She didn't know what to make of that. It was one of those words that she could easily ignore, toss aside... And yet...

 

It was one of those words she never, never heard, she knew that much. Not when her facade was that of a male, certainly not. Particularly not when..

 

Seto turned her gaze downwards again, staring at the puzzle with a faded stare. Particularly not when she'd done terrible things. Unforgivable things... "No, I'm not..." Regardless of physical being, she deserved no compliments. ' _Really... Heck, I bet if you didn' end up with Gozaburo you'd 'ave had yer pick!_ ' A sad frown, and she continued shaking her head. "No I'm not... I wouldn't..." _'Not that ye probably don' already... I... I mean... Yah obviously don' want someone like me, given your usual comments..._ ' The woman growled. "And you're right Mutt... So why don't you just leave me ALONE!"

 

She wanted him gone, she wanted him to stop talking to just stop, stop, _stop reminding her of the unfinished puzzle and the memories she didn't have_! To stop reminding her of this pit she was locked in, and just let her get on with things!

 

Silence...

 

For a split second at least. ' _Yah know,_ ' the Mutt continued, ignoring her unheard voice yet again, _'We should go out sometime... Like... Not out out obviously, but more like..._ ' She raised an eyebrow, looking up at where the 'window' would normally be with a confused frown. Was he seriously... Was he...

 

"What the hell are you saying, Mutt..." She listened as he continued, eyes narrowing. ' _Like... Watch a movie here 'r somethin'. I dunno..._ ' "Gh... Hnhn..." She smirked, eyes narrowing in slightly sadistic mirth. "Ahahaha! Oddly courageous tonight Mutt... First you call me 'beautiful' and now you're asking me out..! If I didn't know better, I'd say you really _did_ fall for someone ignoring you! AHAHAHA!"

 

She continued laughing, only for the sounds to fade and eventually cut off with a sad frown. Why... Why did she feel worse for laughing at that fact than she did before? That wasn't like her at all, was it? As she pondered these thoughts, something 'white' appeared in front of her. She frowned, only slightly listening to Katsuya now as she reached for it. ' _Yah know,_ ' he was saying. ' _I don' actually know anything about yah..._ ' It felt hard, the object in the light. Cold, like rock. "Of course you don't know..." No one was supposed to know. Not even her own brother... But...

 

Know what?

 

She didn't even know what she was talking about, memory after memory affecting her mind...

 

The voice continued. ' _Prolly not surprisin, but it makes it hard teh get yah an early birthday_

_present._ ' Her birthday? When was that... She knew from her mind, that it was somewhere in the fall... But the voices and the faces and the words all blurred together in those memories. The only clear form in them now was her brother, and aside from that... It was just fog. "Of course..." Of course he didn't know...

 

_'Pretty sure yah ain't inta yo-yos...'_ She snorted, pulling the object in her hands close as the blinding light refused to die down. "Got that right Mutt," she muttered as he continued, going on about the only trick he knew. 'Walk the Dog' huh... "Hmp! It figures you'd only know that one, when you seem to refuse to let anyone else walk you!" ' _I ain't a dog, got it!'_ "Whatever you say, Mutt," she said softly, having effectively given up on making her voice heard by now. Pointless...

 

Completely pointless...

 

And still, he was talking. Pathetic, moronic dog... ' _Anyways... I guess what with all I don' know, it figures,_ ' he said, Seto staring at the object in her hands as the light finally dimmed. Her eyes widened as a few details came through, a slight shocked frown coming over her face. "This is.." _'I'd end up makin' one of your stupid dragons...'_ She bit her lip, holding the clay dragon close. It was perfect... In every way. "Moron! The Blue Eyes White Dragon is the Ultimate monster," she forced out, voice low. "Nothing defeats it! It's not stupid, like you are!" White and majestic and flawless in every way...

 

_'Least no one died f'r this one_.'

 

She stared at the dragon, falling silent as she returned to her puzzle. That's right... Her three dragons... Someone died didn't they? In her memory... She'd hounded one of the owners until...

 

The warmth was disappearing.

 

So then, it was time for him to leave again. She snorted, turning away from the 'voice' again. Good riddance! Maybe next time he'd have the sense to keep his mouth shut! And then... _'G'night, Seto-chan... See yah later.'_ "Gh... Gn..." Why... Why was she crying! The dragon in her lap glowed, shifting into another puzzle piece as she cried. What was this? She never cried, never! Not for anything, or anyone! "Ka...Katsuya..." She didn't know any other name for him. It was the only thing she heard from Mokuba, and Mokuba was the only one she could believe besides the Mutt, and given the latter's stupidity and annoyance... "Katsuya," she said, holding her puzzle as she put the piece in with an honest smile. At first glance, it seemed nothing had changed. But the tears vanished, and an aura of calm filled the darkness as she took in a calm and steady breath.

 

"..."

 

_"...Thank-you."_ For some reason... She had no doubts that she was heard that time.

 

 


	16. Chapter 14 | Ghosts

 

Summer was over at last it seemed. Though it was still hot as ever, August had essentially melted away before Katsuya's eyes and he was more than a little upset that it was over. He still had his job of course. His work schedule had been worked through so that the school still allowed his part-time shifts, while making sure that he didn't end up falling asleep in the middle of classes. He was therefore, working Friday nights and weekends yet again. Nonetheless as he walked to school on what was now a lonely trip given the opposite direction from his friends, he couldn't quite remember the last time he wanted summer to last forever...

 

At least, for more than just the fact that school was going to happen at the end of it. So far a few weeks had passed with nothing of note. Mokuba had stressed secrecy in the house for reasons beyond him, though he listened nonetheless. Very few people were permitted to Seto's care as well these days, particularly after the Board of Directors insisted on another 'sweep' of the staff. It had taken just about everything Mokuba and Isono still had to keep Katsuya on the security team; so far, the only reason he was there was because the 'Big Five' had realized they didn't have to pay him nearly as much as the rest of the staff- or indeed, _most_ of the staff. With the number of earned benefits and privileges equally 'minimal', it had been a 'lenience' they were more than happy to allow.

 

As it was, the only other person outside those two and himself that Mokuba audibly trusted was one of the maids. It was hardly surprising; the young woman was probably only two years older than he was, and aside from being from the original staffing team gave the impression of one who couldn't catch a conspiracy if it hit her in the face.

 

(Oddly, she resembled Anzu in a weird way...which had him wonder if she was simply good at hiding the awareness of such matters instead of genuinely oblivious)

 

Aside from that things were moving along fairly well. School was as boring as it always was, he didn't understand a damn thing, and lunch was something he was considering a bit of a gift from the gods. Things were going wonderfully. In fact, he never felt better.

 

"A 'Super Yo-yo'?"

 

Katsuya grinned as he and Yugi showed the toys off to their friends, holding his own in his hand. Currently, Honda was looking at the toy with a raised eyebrow, as if to say 'you're fucking kidding me... Right?' (No, no he wasn't.) It was obviously different from the wooden one he'd gotten in Osaka. In the end though he liked this one better; the Osaka yo-yo was more something cool to look, something best left on a shelf. "Yep," he told Honda with a grin, the other students in the class watching if only out of 'before class boredom'. "It's the latest thing now, these yo-yos!"

 

One of the boys in the class frowned, crossing his arms. "Is something that old fashioned really 'cool'..?" Of course it was! Honestly.

 

Ignoring the boy's skepticism, Yugi nodded. "Yea, they really are!" See? Yugi knew what he was talking about. The boy spun his own yo-yo idly, continuing as it emitted an odd hum noise. "These yo-yos are designed to have a better rolling system! See?"

 

"I'll demonstrate my yo-yo technique," Katsuya said from beside the boy, dropping the yo-yo as he spoke. "First, you have the basics, like the 'Dragger'; that allows you to spin your yo-yo in place!" He

pulled his hand up, the yo-yo spinning a few inches off the ground as he grinned. "And... Long dragger!"

 

The classmates stared, their interest caught. "Ohhhh.. It's hanging in the air and still spinning!" Yes. Yes it was. And now...

 

He continued grinning, dropping his hand. "And... If I let the lurking yo-yo touch the ground," he said as it started rolling. "I 'let the dog out'!" It sounded cooler than 'walk the dog' in his opinion.

 

Apparently though, the class didn't think so. "What," they said with a laugh, "That's just 'Walk the Dog from the old days!"

 

"Just because you give it your own name doesn't mean it's suddenly cool you know!" Tch!

 

Well wasn't that just great. "Eh... s...shit..." He scowled, pulling the yo-yo back with a red face. "Then... I'll have to show you an even cooler move!" Granted, he'd never pulled it off before (He'd actually been pushed out into Kaiba's backyard when he tried this one inside...)...

 

But nothing ventured, nothing gained! He dropped the yo-yo and began swinging it the best he could. Maybe, just maybe... This time he could get it to work? "LOOP THE LOOP!" The students ducked, Yugi shouting as the yo-yo just about clipped his head. In the end, Katsuya was still grumbling as his yo-yo wrapped itself around his neck and face. Sheesh... Now how would he get out of this one?

 

Attempting to untangle himself, he turned as one of the other students growled, shouting at him. "Stop acting like morons!" A- what? He raised an eyebrow, while Yugi followed his gaze to the rather mousy looking boy in the corner of the room. Small eyes, large ears... "Nezumi?" Yugi said with wide eyes. Huh, his name even meant mouse. Oddly appropriate.

 

...Hair was a fairly interesting style too. Was it leaning to the left, or the right... His thoughts were interrupted as 'Nezumi' continued to grumble. "Honestly,” the boy muttered with a scowl. "I can't see how you stand those things... I hate yo-yos!" Uh... O...Kay...

 

"Sheesh, what's wrong with you Nezumi," he said with a still raised brow. "What kinda person doesn't like yo-yos?" Besides certain cross-dressing girls he wouldn't mention at this moment. Because he had a feeling that she didn't like much of anything, if the books on her shelf were any sign. (How many grim social studies did a girl have to read!)

 

This however was one weird guy- and given that he was weird enough before (He even had whisker marks, what was with that), that was saying something. Yugi smiled, holding his out for the boy. "It can't be that bad," he said with his usual tone of innocence. "I'm sure if you give it a try you'll end up liking it!"

 

The teen snorted, gesturing to the gauze on his face. Now that he thought about it, Nezumi didn't look too good at all. The kid's eye was completely black, his nose was red and swollen, and it looked as though one of his teeth were even missing. "Psh," Nezumi scowled, before crossing his arms. "You guys see this," he said, not waiting for Yugi's usual 'what happened?'. "I got this from a Yo-yo!"

 

Wait what? He shook his head, frowning. "Hang on, say again?" A yo-yo? Seriously? Sure they were

solid plastic, so they'd probably hurt like hell but... He was beaten with a _yo-yo_?

 

Nezumi rolled his eyes before explaining. "There's a school gang that extorts people with Yo-yos... A couple days ago, I was walking around at night alone... And suddenly, I was surrounded by these three guys demanding my money! I refused of course," he said with a scowl, turning away. "But when I tried to escape, they started beating me with their yo-yos..."

 

"What..." Katsuya growled, clenching his fists. Ok. _That_ was just too damned messed up to ignore! "Usin' yo-yos t' steal money from other kids... This is completely unforgivable!"

 

Beside him, Yugi was shaking his head. "I don't believe this, yo-yos weren't created to hurt people!"

 

A fourth voice came into the conversation, the others turning as Honda shrugged. "When you think about it, it's solid enough to count as a blunt weapon... So in the right hands, it's pretty dangerous." His thoughts exactly- but the question was less 'is it possible' and more 'what kind of people use yo-yos for weapons'!

 

He supposed a good chunk of it could be what was or wasn't confiscated by the law though. "Please," Nezumi cried, now looking at the three. "I'm begging you! Make them pay for what they've done!" Hang on, first he wanted nothing to do with them, and now he was being asked right outta the blue? What was this about? "I think I know where you can find them," the boy continued, Katsuya momentarily wondering if he should trust a kid whose name essentially meant rat, "They're probably hanging around in the district they attacked me in.."

 

Ah what the hell. He didn't work tonight anyways. "Alright," he said, clenching his fists. It had to be hard right, going back to the last place you wanted to go... Rat or not, the kid had his respect for that. Any hesitance, well... He was scared, that was all. "Leave it to us Nezumi! You'll get your vengeance!"

 

Honda nodded. "I'll come along too then," he began to say, before Katsuya cut him off.

 

"Nahhh, I'll be fine. There's only three guys after all." Yo-yos or no yo-yos, he could take three guys down easily. Honda snorted, muttering something about bragging before walking off.

 

The blond turned however, when Nezumi spoke up nervously again. "Ah... Maybe Yugi should come to.. If someone like Yugi's there, I'll feel more at ease..." He swallowed, before continuing. "Fighting makes me uncomfortable so..." If fighting made him so uncomfortable, why was he asking them to fight in the first place? Vengeance was a natural feeling to have when you got the crap beaten out of you by a toy though he supposed, so in a twisted way it made sense.

 

From beside him, the boy nodded. "Alright," he said, eyes becoming serious. "I'll come too then!"

 

Katsuya clenched his fists, blood boiling. He hadn't had a fight in _ages_... He was really getting into this! "I'll teach 'em a lesson they'll never forget," he started off, heading for his seat. "He who abuses people with yo-yos will be punished by yo-yos!" Or something like that...

 

(He'd wonder more about why it made a difference for Nezumi if Yugi was there, but there were other things on his mind) And now that he'd said that..!

 

Actually it sounded really stupid now that it was actually out there. Honda continued to shake his head as he took his own seat, obviously a little miffed about being shaken off. "Whatever the _fuck_

that's supposed to mean..." Similar thoughts... Why were these sorts of things only ever clear in hindsight?

 

As he turned to make a comment on that the bell rang, and the teacher came in. Ackkk whatever, the blond decided as he waved the thought off. He'd continue the verbal battle with Honda later, before school let out to beat the tar out of these other pricks. Katsuya turned to look back at the front, briefly frowning as he caught an odd look on Nezumi's face. Now what... What was that about...

 

* * *

 

"It was in an alley a little further up," Nezumi said as the three walked, Yugi looking around with wide eyes. "We aren't far now."

 

Rickety old buildings stood around them, clearly out of use and out of date. Rusted wire fences blocked a few paths, some bent in the middle where people couldn't have been bothered to find a way around, and broken glass from the windows above littered the cracked pavement. Katsuya was well was looking around, though considerably more 'on edge' at this point. This area was giving him the creeps... It seemed all too familiar, and he was getting a nasty feeling that they were walking into something worse than expected.

 

"There's not a lot of people around," Yugi was muttering, clearly on edge as well. "A terrible atmosphere..." Terrible indeed; it didn't help that they hadn't seen a single person so far, but the route they had taken to this particular area was really weird. Almost disorienting even, and if it hadn't been for his surroundings he wouldn't have had an inkling of where they were. He nodded, turning to Nezumi.

 

"By th' way Nezumi..." He continued to keep an eye out as they looked around, the negative feeling only increasing. "You said they used yo-yos as weapons right?" Shouldn't be... Too hard to combat that he figured.

 

The boy gave another nod, before answering. "Yes... It's a pretty frightening technique... They surround their target, and if you even try to move, you end up pelted by them constantly!"

 

He growled, cracking his knuckles. "Well that's got me convinced... I'll teach 'm a lesson they won't forget anytime soon!" As they approached the 'destination' however, he quickly lost his scowl to give a confused frown. _'we're here'_ , Nezumi was saying. _'this is the place'._ He looked over the abandoned factory with narrowed eyes, shaking his head a few times. "This place... I've been here b'fore..." And if he'd been here before, in this area... Then that meant... They entered the building, and the memories flooded back.

 

"I... I remember now," Yugi shouted, growing pale. "This is..." Not. Good.

 

He tensed as he remembered it now, from when he'd been too beaten up to pay attention. This was Hirutani's headquarters... The same place where that bastard had him strung up on a line with tasers in an attempt to get him back into the gang, an event that Yugi of all people had saved him from. (Though now that he thought, it was probably the other one that did it.) The room remained silent, save for their footsteps. The hanging hook in the middle of the room creaked as a light wind passed through the building, and the entire building seemed to shudder with it. They needed to get out of there right now... Abruptly however Katsuya turned, a noise sounding from behind him.

 

"Ngh!" The bag was thrown to the floor instantly. Around them, a horde of people jumped to the floor, each one carrying a yo-yo. And why oh why did that seem more ominous than amusing now that he thought of it... "Yugi!" he shouted, taking a protective stance in front of his friend. That little rat... This was a set up! "Stay back!" He looked around at the crowd, watching as the gang members spun their yo-yos threateningly. 'Three guys' his ass, this was an entire gang here. Fuck fuck fuck...

 

_AGH_! "SURROUND THEM," a voice called out, the yo-yos beginning to strike against his arms. Katsuya turned to look back at the other two, arms held defensively.

 

"Yugi, Nezumi! Get out of here, now!" As Yugi protested, the blond watched Nezumi pull him through the mess of strings, before turning back to the crowd. "Hnnnng..." Damn it... This attack was way to well prepared.! They _knew_ they were coming! "Damn it all..." Nezumi that rat... Hopefully he'd actually take Yugi out of there now that these assholes had him here- After all, he _was_ the target right? Yet with that very thought, he realized he never told Nezumi to grab Yugi. The fact that he had...

 

A hauntingly familiar voice came through, and the teen held back a growl. "Trapped like a rat, aren't you Jonouchi..." Rat, Nezumi... Oh haha, that was just so... He turned as Hirutani appeared, gritting his teeth. He was right then. Damn it... Damn it! "One wrong move," the man continued with a smirk, "And one of those yo-yos could hit you in a very vulnerable place. Tsk tsk tsk..." He shook his head, hands in his pockets as he looked back. "Jonouchi... You should have known I wouldn't give up on you so easily... No one leaves this gang, and I'll do anything to prevent that rule from being broken."

 

Again he meant? Because he'd already left, long ago... Katsuya clenched his fists, eyes drifting around at the yo-yos surrounding him as he attempted to find a way out. Nothing. Damn it...

 

"Don't worry," Hirutani was continuing. "You won't be a low ranking member, oh no... You're much too good for that Jonouchi. Number _2_ ," he said with a laugh, cold smirk still playing on his face. "I'll make you my right hand... Just like things used to be!"

 

"And what the hell makes you think I'll do that, jackass," he shouted with a snarl. "'Cause you have a lot t' learn about makin' deals, I can tell yah that!"

 

Hirutani merely chuckled, and Katsuya instantly regretted speaking as if the others had escaped. "Well... I don't think you want me to be your enemy just yet," he said, looking past the blond. "After all, just look over there." Shit. He turned, eyes wide as he watched Yugi struggle against the hold of another gang member beneath the hanging ceiling hook. That damned rat Nezumi was standing right there, doing nothing...

 

"Yugi!" He heard Hirutani shout to one of his lackeys; ' _do it!_ ' he cried. The hook was pulled down, latched through the string on the kid's puzzle and then pulled back up. "YUGI!" The boy hung there, gasping for breath as the cord dug against his throat. Hands and feet both twitched slightly as the boy's eyes widened, struggling to breathe. Katsuya's eyes filled with rage, and he turned to look at Hirutani. "You BASTARD!" He didn't even spare Nezumi a glance as the boy looked away guiltily, Hirutani idly congratulating him on the plan. "Just how fucked up are you!"

 

"Escaping is impossible, Jonouchi," Hirutani stated calmly, smirking. "Either swear you'll join my

gang... Or watch your friend die!" Damn it... Damn it!

 

He clenched his fists, looking over at Yugi for a moment before growling. "Tch... Hirutani... You said there's no way out of this?" Mokuba was going to murder him for this... Provided he survived it. At the look of shock on the gang leader's face, he grit his teeth. Time to go...

 

Now! He charged, the yo-yos pounding against his body as he headed towards where Yugi was hanging. "He... He's moving," the blond heard one person say. "Does he _want_ to be beaten to death?" Ignore it...

 

He pushed forwards, stumbling slightly as his kneecap was cracked by a rather well placed strike. Ignore it... Ignore it...

 

Hang in there Yugi, he thought as he pushed through, arms blocking his face and chest from harm best he could. Hang in there... He was coming! The yo-yos continued to pound at him, even as he reached the hook. It was creating a rather steady, if not frightening rhythm of thumping but even so he continued at his task. He wasn't letting a friend die...

 

Not before he gave his own! "J...Jonouchi," Yugi wheezed, as Katsuya finally pulled the boy down by the hook. The weight of his body no longer pressed against the cord on his puzzle, and he was able to breathe again.

 

"Hang in there," he said, lifting the boy up slightly so that the hook could be pulled off. "I'll get us outta here..." _Hit him harder,_ Hirutani was shouting. _Hit him harder, so he'll stop_! Heheheh... For all that it hurt he could only grin momentarily at the panic in the other's voice. Scared, Hirutani? So was he, to tell the truth. So was he...

 

Katsuya bit his lip as he attempted to think of a plan. Shit He needed a counter attack, but what... "Hirutani," he shouted in the meantime, shielding Yugi's body with his own against the onslaught of yo-yos. "The pain I'm feeling in this body... It wouldn't even compare to the pain of betraying a friend, not even multiplied a thousand-fold!" There had to be something he could do, anything... Any- There was a flash of light against Yugi's puzzle, and he stared at it for a moment. Of course...

 

This would work he thought, as he came up with something. Now that Yugi was safe, this would work!

 

"Hirutani," he said again, gasping as the yo-yos pounded against his protesting ribs. "Prepare yourself, because I'm going to go all out against you with my counter attack! An' if I wasn' _PISSED_ b'fore, I sure as hell am now!"

 

Hirutani merely laughed, standing behind his 'wall' of thugs with a smirk. There was just a bit of faltering in his tone...just a little. "Talking big are we? Take a look at where you are! Even you should realize that this is a no-win situation!" Yet as he said that the man still had a slight expression of doubt. The attackers grinned, nodding in agreement with that same expression at the edges of their grins.

 

"Heheheee..."

 

"We're gonna 'walk the dog' all over your dead bodies Jonouchi..." Oh were they now?

 

"Jonouchi," Hirutani continued, the boys glaring at him from behind the onslaught. "I'm going to give you one more chance. Swear to join my gang, and I'll let you live!" Bullshit.

 

Before he could even come up with a comeback, Yugi shouted from behind. "Hirutani! Jonouchi will _never_ join you again!" The blond looked at him with surprise for a brief moment, listening as his friend continued. It was weak, and hoarse after the strain against the hook and cord earlier- but even through that, his voice managed to ring about the room for all to hear. "He doesn't care how much you threaten him! He'll never do it!"

 

Katsuya grinned. "Heh, That's right! Hear that 'boss monkey'," he shouted, voice rasping from the pressure against his back. "That's what a _real_ friend would say!"

 

Apparently this was the last straw; Hirutani scowled at them, before waving his hand. " _KILL THEM_!" Hn, not even an 'I gave you a chance'? Well, obviously he didn't really want him as badly as they thought.

 

Now then. "Yugi," Katsuya shouted, his friend crying as the blond took the brunt of the damage headed their way. "I need t' borrow th' puzzle!"

 

"Hu-Huh?" Yugi stood there a moment, before pulling it off with a curt nod. "Okay, it's yours!" Though confusion was evident in his face, he didn't even hesitate as the blond took it.

 

Katsuya smirked. "This is just what I need tah turn th' tables..." He grabbed it by the end of the string, facing the others. "Come and get me, yah chimps," he shouted as the puzzle began spinning rapidly in a circle. The attackers frowned, still sending the yo-yos forward as the puzzle was spun in a makeshift shield before freezing.

 

"W-What the.."

 

The blond's smirk grew into a grin. Perfect! He could feel the force of the strings being pulled around the puzzle now, and continued to spin it for good measure. "Nice try bozos," he said with a laugh. "You think I'm swingin' this f'r fun?" As the gang members stared in horror, his grin widened. "Don'tcha see it yet? Your yo-yo's ain't comin' back..." He stopped the spinning, pulling the puzzle back as the strings at the end of the gang-members' fingers pulled tight. "Cause now, I've got 'em!" As Yugi beamed at the successfully played plan, he unwrapped the yo-yo strings from the puzzle before tying them around the hook. "An' now, I can do this!"

 

He pulled down on the hook before releasing, hook taking off for the ceiling. The gang lackeys shouted with mixed annoyance and pain as their fingers just about popped under the force, dangling a few feet above the ground by their outstretched arms.

 

"AHA _HAAA_! 'Human Hanging Yo-Yo'!" He continued to grin as Hirutani shouted in shock, tossing the puzzle back to his friend. "Thanks Yugi! Here's th' puzzle back!" He blinked as the one who caught it looked back at him with confident eyes, shaking his head. "Y...Yugi!" That...

 

That was a fast switch! The other Yugi smirked, replacing the puzzle around his neck. "Jonouchi," he began, the smirk still in place. "It's payback time!" For a brief moment, he stared, before his grin returned into place. Payback with the other Yugi?

 

He'd welcome it! There couldn't be much more that would be fulfilling after what Hirutani put them through before! "A'right," he said, the two breaking into a run as they headed up the stairs.

 

"You take Hirutani," 'Yugi' shouted, taking a separate door to the outside. "I'll handle the rest!" As the remaining crowd from Hirutani's quarters followed after the teen, he nodded. That sounded like a plan! If it were anything else he was sure he'd be doubting him now, but with who he was working with that would only be an incredibly large insult to 'Yugi's skills right now.

 

"Will do!" Though they all ended up on the roof, each one of the boys came up on opposite ends. He turned, watching as the crowd that followed Yugi moved to attempt to corner him on the roof with

their yo-yos before their boss came up through the next door closest. "Hirutani," he said, leaning against the broken glass windows of the factory. A literal gang now stood between them both, and it was all or nothing. "Let's settle this once and for all!"

 

As Hirutani turned, Katsuya found himself thinking back to the days when they were in middle school, where all of this started. When he and Honda just picked fights with pretty much anyone in the area. When the man he was facing now wasn't quite as 'insane', to put it mildly. "Heh heh heh heh heh..." The man chuckled as he moved to face Katsuya, smirking. "I've heard you say that before... Back in middle school, at the start of our beautiful friendship..." He continued chuckling, speaking with an almost nostalgic tone. "Remember how we used to fight?" he said, still smirking. "How we'd go on until both of us were on the ground, tied?" Yes he did...

 

But that was back then. This, however... He snorted, shaking his head. "Hn! That was b'fore you were so fucked up in th' head," he said with a scowl, taking up a loose fighting stance. "Today, I ain't holdin' back!" As the man continued to chuckle, he charged. " _LET'S GO_!" Hirutani also moved, throwing a punch past his face that he easily dodged. "Hah!" As the man froze, realizing he'd missed only after a moment, Katsuya smirked. "URAAA _AAAAHH_!" There was a loud crack as his right fist broke the gang leader's nose, Hirutani stumbling back with a snarl. "What's th' matter Hirutani," he said with a laugh, resisting the urge to shake his fist- that nose was harder than he thought. "You've gotten pretty flabby! Must be pretty easy at th' top of 'Monkey Mountain'!"

 

The man merely snarled, before looking at the window beside him and smirking. He frowned, eyes narrowing as he held his stance. Now what was he up to? Katsuya tensed as Hirutani grabbed a shard of glass from the window, shattering it in his hands and throwing them at the blond's face. "TAKE _THIS_ ," he shouted, his target cursing as the glass got in his eyes. FUCK!

 

_FUCK_! Great, now he couldn't open his eyes, FUCK! "FUCK!" How the hell did he not realize that was what he was doing!

 

Hirutani laughed, charging him again. "Hehehehehe... Unlike you Jonouchi, I've gotten smarter," he shouted, fists clenched. The blond ignored him for the moment, standing there as he held onto his bleeding head and tried to keep from stumbling. "Now you _DIE_!" Katsuya grunted as the man's fist slammed into his face, before struggling to his hands and knees as blood dripped from his face. Crap... Crap he couldn't see...

 

He rubbed at his eyes before pulling his hands back in pain, turning his head in an attempt to hear his opponent. Quiet... Too quiet... He sat still waiting for a sound, anything, as Hirutani snuck up behind him. Where was he... He had to end this fast, get these god damned shards of glass out of his eyes...

 

_Crack._

 

"Hahahahaha..." He chuckled, the laughter slowly increasing in volume. "You idiot," he said with a laugh, eyes still closed as he turned to the sound. "The glass you tossed is tellin' me where you are! RAA _AAAAAHH_!" Before Hirutani could react, Katsuya's punch sent him flying down the end of the roof, the teen having whirled around to face him within a split second. The man shouted, gripping the side of the roof as Katsuya moved to face him. "Ow... ah..." He attempted to open his eyes, managing

to force his right one open. The constant throbbing stung and cut into his eyes, but he forced himself to keep at least one open while he turned to the gang leader coldly. "Eyes 'r all watery..." Red too...

 

Nothing but a red curtain covering his slightly doubled and watered vision.

 

Dully, he could see Hirutani's single hand gripping the edge, the man looking up with wide eyes. "Well, Hirutani," he said as he pulled out his yo-yo, a dark smirk on his face. "Wanna see my yo-yo technique, since y'r there?" The yo-yo hit the ground rolling forwards as the smirk grew. "Parade the Pooch! Hahah... Y'know... Walk th' dog!" The yo-yo rolled over Hirutani's fingers, the man shouting as he released the roof.

 

"Ow..!" The fingers cracked, and Hirutani pulled them back instinctively. All to late, he realized the price for that. "Ah... AAAAAAAAA _AAAAAAAAGHH_!" The scream lasted only a second before a sick thud echoed through the air. As the man's body hit the ground, and Katsuya sighed. Now that he thought about it, that name was stupid too. Maybe he should stop trying to re-name it... "I gotta confess," he said, partially to himself. "That's the only trick I know. Still practcin' th' others..."

 

"Jonouchi," Yugi's voice called from beside him, and Katsuya turned to face him as he shut his eyes again, finding the blindness far preferred to the constant nagging pain. "You're alright!" Somehow, he supposed.

 

He grinned, nodding. "Haha, as I'll ever be!" As Yugi helped him back down the stairs, he continued grinning even with his next thought. "Hey, where'd that rat, Nezumi go?"

 

'Yugi' merely shrugged, grabbing Katsuya's bag as they left. "Good question..." He apparently didn't care much at the moment. Now that he thought about it more, with Nezumi's injuries as honest as they were the moron was probably put up to it in the first place.

 

Not that this changed his mood of course. The blond scowled, making a fist as he winced in pain again. "Yeah... Well when I find him I'm gonna kick his ass!" As Yugi laughed beside him, they continued on their way back from the warehouse. All this crap... He sighed. It was probably over now, if the thuds and screams he'd heard were any clue at least. "Yugi... 'M sorry, getting yah caught up in my problems again..."

 

The teen merely looked up, regardless of the fact that Katsuya couldn't see at the moment. "Your problems are my problems, Jonouchi." That... He smiled.

 

That really meant a lot actually...

 

* * *

 

"I can't believe you!" Katsuya winced as Mokuba, unseen thanks to the eye-patches the doctor had put on him, continued reaming him out even while entering the house after leaving the hospital. "I thought you were completely through with insane injuries! Do you have any idea how much pain you're going to be in when those painkillers wear off?"

 

He winced again, pausing as they passed Seto's room before entering it. It was pretty awkward being led around by Mokuba, but he figured it'd be alright. Though now he'd have to miss a week of school for his eyes to heal.

 

' _Corneal scaring_ ' was a term they'd given to him while describing the side effects of all of this. He was gonna have scars on his _EYES_. That was really really cool in his books. (Actually it hurt a lot even with the pain killers, this was going to be hell...)

 

"Er..." He swallowed, grunting as he was forced into a chair. "A lot?" Understatement, but really what else was there to say?

 

Mokuba rolled his eyes as his friend scratched his cheek nervously, before scowling. "That's an understatement Katsuya-nii! You're lucky nothing's broken!" Took the words from his head, tell him something he didn't know... As the blond merely gave a nervous smile in response, he sighed. "Whatever... I'm gonna get some ice. Katsuya-nii, make sure you don't do anything like this again, understand?" At the severeness of Mokuba's tone, his smile quickly vanished.

 

"...Yeah," he finally said, turning to where he heard Mokuba's voice. "Promise." There was a sound of footsteps, and as the boy left the room Katsuya turned back to the bed. The chair hadn't been moved from what he could tell, so... He should be facing Seto now. "...I bet y'r laughing your ass off in there, aren'tcha Seto-chan..." He smirked, leaning back in his chair. Talking to a person who couldn't talk back was strangely freeing- almost as freeing as the knowledge that they wouldn't remember it once waking up. "Man... Not bein' able t' see sucks... It makes me afraid for my sister ev'n more..." Katsuya 'looked' back at the woman, sighing.

 

"I ever tell yah abou' my sister," he began, propping his head on one hand. "Miight as well tell y' now if I hav'n't..." As the blond began to speak, Seto's eyes opened slightly- He couldn't see it however. All he saw was darkness behind the veil of gauze. For a moment, though he couldn't remember later on, he thought he 'saw' her stand there even with that though- even through the eye patches and his eyelids themselves. He couldn't see her face but it was almost clear enough to be beside him, and he could swear he heard Seto's voice.

 

_'I'm listening... Mutt._ '

 

* * *

 

"...But don't take too long," Seto muttered, sitting with her arms around her legs and scowling. "Or your voice will be next." She had ways... Granted with her luck, she'd forget as soon as she 'woke up' or whatever it was she was going to do when the puzzle was finished.

 

_'My sister's got a condition,_ ' Katsuya began, the woman not moving as he spoke. ' _Her eyesight's deterioratin'. An' since she can't afford th' surgery, she's gonna be completely blind in a few months_.' Well, didn't that just suck. She had to feel a slight bit of pity though, looking through the 'window'. After all... Even with the small bit of 'sight' she got, she knew that it was nothing compared to reality. Not even close. For that to be ripped away without warning would be absolutely horrifying. So really, while she wasn't saying it out loud...

 

She could empathize. ' _I'm only gonna be blind for a few days_ ,' the teen continued sadly. ' _Can't ev'n compare it t' f'rever..._ ' She snorted, crossing her arms. Of course he couldn't- even if he was blind for that long, she doubted his mind would wrap around that fact. "You're the one who blinded yourself though, moron! Who lets someone throw glass in their face, seriously!" Regardless of how she even knew that was how he was injured, she continued listening numbly. There was really nothing else to do here. The puzzle pieces wouldn't fit together, and when she put in the one that appeared a while before all she got was another scene of staring.

 

School time. She must have been angry with him about something, but then when wasn't she? She'd been in a washroom stall... Yelling at the Mutt to get something for her. She never found out what was

so important about it though; the memory cut off, so she couldn't find out what it was she wanted. She'd obviously gotten it though, given the case that had been thrown into the stall.

 

_'Hey, Seto-chan_ ,' Katsuya said, the woman still staring off into the darkness that was apparently her heart. ' _What's it like in there..? Where ever yah are? Th' other Yugi said tha' you were puttin' a puzzle t'gether... But where?_ ' "...Where..." Somehow she didn't know. It was dark, and that was all...

 

Other than that, she had no clue. Someone more sentimental and 'flighty' would probably say something stupid like 'my soul', or 'my heart'. Those things were absolutely ridiculous, she decided. Besides... If this was her 'soul' or anything even connected to it, then that just said far too many grim things about her situation. "Don't ask things like that, moron. Not when you won't listen to me." It would be pointless to answer really... Like speaking to a rock. "Just leave..."

 

And of course, Katsuya continued on without hearing her.

 

_'...Must be lon'ly,'_ the teen said, Seto narrowing her eyes further in response. ' _Where ever y' are I mean... 'S been a long time after all._.' A long time... That was one way of putting it. She snorted, shaking her head. As if she'd admit to being 'lonely' in this place. "Please Mutt," she said with a scoff, ignoring the fact that she would remain unheard. "It's not nearly as bad as you think." It's worse, the voice in her head said. Much worse than that. So why didn't she just leave...

 

There was a silence, and Katsuya sighed. ' _Well... All th' better teh get out then, righ'?_ ' "Tch... What do you think, MORON!" But she couldn't leave yet. Seto scowled, turning away from the still open 'window' that showed nothing but a blurred view of the ceiling. "I've been trying since I woke up here!" Not yet though... She couldn't leave yet. "Stop reminding me!" And of course...

 

' _Hey, Seto-chan,'_ She was being ignored... ' _...No need t'.. Hwaaah... T' yell...'_

 

The woman jumped, turning to her 'window' in shock as the teen's yawning voice echoed around her. Katsuya sounded sleepy, almost half-gone as he spoke. He was probably about to knock himself out right now, too zoned out to even realize what was happening yet somehow... Somehow..!

 

"How.." She stared up, standing with wide eyes. "My own brother can't even hear my voice... How..." Why was this MUTT, who she didn't even like in any way... This MORON who got himself injured beyond anything for reasons she had yet to know of, who continued to call her 'chan', who continued to speak as though she was dead..!

 

Who dared to speak to her as though when she woke up, it would all disappear! " _HOW CAN YOU HEAR ME, WHEN MY BROTHER CAN'T_!"

 

There was no answer, save for the sound of snoring. She stared, eyes wide with mixed rage and confusion as she shook. Idly, she noted that her cheeks were wet. Huh! So she was crying again... Really, why was it that this place was so insistent on throwing everything out into the open... Her fists shook, and she continued to stare upwards with the thoughts on the 'Mutt' still on her mind. "How..."

 

_'G-night... Seto-chan...'_

 


	17. Chapter 15 | The Boy with White Hair

 

True to the doctor's word, the eyepatches had come off within a week. Also true to the doctor's word the area around his eyes still hurt like hell, and he wanted nothing more than some relief for them. "Achhhhh..." Katsuya winced, rubbing his eyes before having his hand smacked by a flyswatter. "Ow! Mokuba, what's yer problem!" They hurt! And...

 

So did that! The boy frowned, before going back to his breakfast. "The doctor said not to touch your eyes Katsuya-nii. And besides, there was a fly there..." A fly?! Watching as the blond squirmed and searched his hand for the fly that was no longer there, he laughed. "AHAHA! Anyways... Katsuya-nii, I'm gonna come by the school today, since my class gets let out early today alright?" Oh really? That was cool.

 

Katsuya blinked, looking at Mokuba a few moments before nodding. "Alrigh', see yah then! Wait..." He frowned. Mokuba was driven to school, so since when... "Yer walkin?"

 

He shrugged, smiling. "Eh... Thought I'd try something different... Besides," he said as he grinned. "You walk all the time, so it can't be that hard right?" Yes, but that was because he was used to doing things like that. Things like running late for class. And somehow surviving being beaten by yo-yos. (And those bruises still hurt...)

 

"Er... Alright..." He winced as the boy pulled on his still fairly tender arm, tugging him off the chair. "Ow ow ow! Hey, easy on the arm!"

 

"Yeah yeah," the boy said dismissively, letting go. He seemed fairly excited today, for some reason. "Come on, we'll be late for school!" Oh yeah, walking took about half an hour from here to the Elementary school huh...

 

He nodded, waving his hand before grabbing his bag. "Yeah yeah, I'm goin..." With those words said, they left the house and moved their separate ways. Probably for the best that their schools were essentially angled from the house in a 'triangle' formation, Katsuya thought to himself. He had a lot to think about... And Mokuba was obviously in more of a talking mood than a 'let Katsuya be quiet for a rare moment' mood. As to what he was thinking about...

 

Mostly, as much as it made him frown, it was about Seto. That voice... The woman's voice he heard when he was talking out loud to her. There was no way it could be her, could it? If she'd been speaking, she wouldn't be saying those things, and that was even assuming the voice had been real. And besides, Seto normally had a sort of 'undertone' to her words, that chillingly cruel and selfish tone that made her voice almost seem permanently hoarse. Adding in the Vegetative state it should have been obvious. The doctor said that in some cases there was a grunt noise. Not a full blown sentence. And yet...

 

_'How can you hear me?_ ' He'd heard that much before falling asleep that night, but since then, he hadn't heard anything. What he had heard was faint enough as it was. Slightly louder than the 'thank you' he thought he heard before, and just as ghostly. It was just enough to bug him without giving him a clue as to what the hell was going on. "Ehhhh," he muttered as he came to the school grounds. "Probably jus' th' pain killers..." That had to be it... Hallucinations explained everything right? Coming into the classroom, he grunted as a familiar, tri-color haired kid tackled him.

 

"Jonouchi-kun! You're back!" And still injured! He groaned, holding his stomach.

 

"Yug... 'M still bruised..." As the boy quickly panicked, Katsuya managed a light laugh. "'S fine! Jus' try goin' easy on th' tackles huh?" At this, a stampede of footsteps came their way, the teens moving to the side to avoid being run over by few of the girls from the class. One in particular looked fairly excited, running right to a gathering of most of the others in the room. As she shouted the others turned, blinking.

 

"Big news," she was saying, grinning madly. "There's going to be a new guy in our class!" At the mention of a 'new boy', about half the female students in the room jumped up, Katsuya and Yugi barely avoiding the stampede to get to their seats. At least one or two boys had quickly perked up with interest themselves- no doubt for reasons that weren't focused on the latest building 'fanclub'. Mostly the girls up front were saying the same things; 'what kind of guy', 'when will he be here', 'did you see him'...

 

Yeesh... This didn't happen when Kaiba enrolled! (Then again, Kaiba probably scared off the welcoming committee, thereby destroying the problem at its roots.) Katsuya rolled his eyes, before watching as the Japanese teacher came in. "Everyone," he said, leading in a white haired, pale looking teen to the classroom. Suddenly, all of the questions were about to be answered. "Today we have a new student." He turned to the boy, still smiling. "If you could introduce yourself."

 

The teen nodded, smiling nervously. "My name is Bakura Ryou," he said, bowing. "Pleased to meet you." Bakura huh...

 

Katsuya jumped as the teacher told him to take a seat beside him, grinning. Alright! He got to sit by the new guy! (It was like elementary school all over again!) The blond waved the teen over excitedly, his grin only growing as Bakura looked his way. "Over here! I'm over here!"

 

As he shouted Anzu turned to Bakura with a worried look on her face. "Bakura, you have to be careful, Jonouchi is the worst in class!"

 

He growled, turning on Anzu instantly. "Nhhh! What'd you say!" Katsuya's thoughts were cut rather quickly as Bakura sat down, turning to him with a smile.

 

"Nice to meet you, Jonouchi-kun." Oh, polite. As polite as Yugi at the very least!

 

"Heh," he said with a grin. "Same here! We're gonna get along fine I bet!" He turned to look at the others a moment, before continuing. He had time... Yeah, there was time before the bell rang. "Hey Bakura, lemme introduce y' to my buddies," he said, Honda and Yugi both coming over from their desks. "Tha's Honda," he said as he pointed to the teen, "An she's Anzu..."

 

Yugi smiled as he looked at Bakura, introducing himself. "I'm Yugi!" Well, about time someone beat him to the introductions he supposed.

 

The albino again bowed his head, smiling. "Pleased to meet all of you," he said, before turning to Yugi with a curious smile. "Yugi... Ah, does your family run a game shop at all?" As Bakura and Yugi started up a conversation, Katsuya leaned back on his chair. Eh, figured that Bakura would catch the word 'game' in Yugi's name. The two hit it off right off the bat it seemed, the minutes draining away before class start. He blinked when the name 'Monster World' came up, turning to his friend.

 

"Monster World... What kinda game is that?" Sounded like some sort of video game... Maybe something Mokuba would play.

 

Yugi smiled, before explaining. "Monster World is a mix between a board game and an RPG," he began, before going on. "A player goes on the DM, or 'Dark Master's side, and the others create a team of adventurers to explore the playing field. One team goes out with the goal of beating the others," he continued, "But there's more! The interesting thing is that you can add more pieces to the board, like a village or a forest, so the game can be different each round!"

 

"Hoh..." As Bakura complimented Yugi's knowledge of games, Katsuya grinned. "Sound's pretty cool! I bet even Mokuba would like it!" He'd have to ask later after school, see what he thought. Sounded pretty fun to him at least! "Hey Bakura, think we could play Monster World tomorrow after school? If it's alright with you?" Tomorrow was Thursday after all...

 

So they'd have plenty of time, given that he didn't have work. Surprisingly Bakura didn't answer for a moment, instead gaining an oddly nervous look on his face. It didn't help that his voice was so quiet... As he spoke with Yugi about the puzzle in fact, he had to hold back a frown. Bakura didn't look too good now... Hell if it was possible, he was paler than he had been when he came in. Maybe he was getting a bad case of nerves from all the attention? He didn't seem like much of a talker...

 

In the end however, the screeches of a good portion of the female class distracted him from his thoughts. "Oi! Jonouchi!"

 

"Heh?" As he turned, they glared at him before pulling Bakura up against the latter's will.

 

"Give Bakura back to us, _IDIOT_!" W-What? He never took him! Heck, they were due to sit beside each other!!

 

As they left, he heard them talk about already starting a fan club and giving him a class tour. He shook his head, eyes blank. "Sheesh... Bakura's the kind of guy that attracts ladies like flies..." He briefly had the image of Kaiba chasing after the teen, almost laughing at the thought. Kaiba chasing after a guy...

 

That would be the day. It was still an amusing image to play through his head, before he heard Anzu mutter ' _unlike a certain someone...'_. Niiiice. Just because anyone he asked last year turned him down completely... "Bakura's a really nice person, huh Jonouchi-kun." He turned to Yugi, nodding in agreement as the topic was turned to more positive things.

 

"Yeah," he said with a nod, before leaning back in his seat. "We can definitely be good friends..." There were no 'bad vibes', no negative rumours... He seemed like a pretty cool guy Katsuya decided, leaning back in his chair. A little later just before the bell rang, Bakura returned to the class alone, looking a little nervous but otherwise alright. Making a mental note to ask if he was ok later on, Katsuya turned his attention back to the class itself. Now that school was going on... He sighed mentally as he tried to make sense of the teacher. It was one thing when his dad hadn't given a damn about his grades... But Mokuba was sending his mom updates, and his mom was sending back _comments_.

 

Many. Comments. Damn it...

 

"Jonouchi-kun," the teacher called, snapping his thoughts in two. "How about you read from the text book next?" Gulping, he nodded a little stiffly. S-Shit, he'd gotten lost in thought again...

 

"Er... O-Ok!"

 

* * *

 

"Katsuya-nii!"

 

As Mokuba charged into the school grounds, Katsuya found himself scratching his cheek nervously. No one he knew appeared to have really heard that (Though a few girls had giggled at the sight of him being tackled by a small child), but he didn't really feel like explaining the names and honorifics and such being thrown his way from Kaiba's kid brother at the moment.

 

"Hey..!" He coughed, turning as Bakura and the others came towards him; evidently, this was the direction the albino lived in, and Yugi was trying to keep the conversation alive as they walked. "Nice t' see yah Mokuba! Er.." He looked at Bakura, who had finally stopped at about the third 'Bakura-kun!' that Yugi had shouted. Mokuba as well looked up, blinking at the teen. "Mokuba, this is Bakura..."

 

Mokuba grinned, waving at the teen. "Hi!" The other merely smiled nervously, bowing.

 

"Nice to meet you.. Ah..." He turned to Yugi, who had been patiently waiting for the introductions to pass. By this point, Anzu and Honda as well had shown up, the group appearing to almost surround the guy. "You guys..."

 

Yugi nodded, smiling. "Hey, Bakura... If you're free tomorrow, we'd like to play Monster World..." Straight to the point! Well, made sense that Yugi wanted to play as well of course.. He'd just given up on it for the day, himself. "Though if it's a problem, we could play at my house instead..."

 

As Bakura stared at the boy in silence a moment, Mokuba turned to Katsuya with a raised eyebrow. "Monster World..? You're going to go play monster world?" As Katsuya shrugged, he continued to stare. Monster World was the sort of game that people played with a group of close friends over a span of days... While it was hardly restricted to pasty nerds in a store-room basement, he didn't really see Katsuya playing it either. Then again, it could just be one of those things he didn't know about. Like sushi- he'd never had some, and when Katsuya had told him it was raw fish...

 

Well it was an interesting night, even if he had to deal with Katsuya's laughter regarding what was apparently “Common Food”. And it hadn't been as bad as he'd thought either, so he supposed he could give this a chance too. "Ummm... Can I come too?" This seemed to further increase the look of discomfort on Bakura's face, and Katsuya almost frowned before Yugi beat him to the punch.

 

"Er... You don't seem to like the game much..." Not much seemed to be an understatement. Either Bakura was coming down with something real bad, or... Well.

 

Something. Bakura quickly shook his head, eyes wide. "Oh no... Not at all, that's not it! I really would love to play with all of you, it's just..." He fell silent, the boys sharing nervous glances before listening.

"Well... At my old school, I played this game with my friends... But every time I played, everyone else would lose consciousness..." Uh.. What? Katsuya tensed, blinking furiously as Mokuba gulped audibly. Er...

 

That was a little creepy... They weren't in- "They're still in a coma at the hospital," Bakura continued, looking at the ground. "I understand if you don't believe me, but it's the truth... People avoid me because of these stories, so I transferred schools... I've isolated myself from my family to make sure that nothing happened to them either, so I live alone..." The albino gripped his bag, giving the group a sad frown. "I really want to be friends with everyone, and I would love to play with you... But I don't want to lose anyone else," he said, turning away to run off. "So I won't play! Good bye!"

 

"Ah," Yugi blinked, before calling after the boy. "Bakura!" The thoughts in pretty much everyone's heads going home could be summed up to one thing; _'it's not possible for people to go into comas by playing a game... Right?_ ' It couldn't be possible to just randomly collapse in the middle of something like that. Yet there was one glaring point that went against those thoughts, blaring and screaming through all of their minds. After all...

 

Wasn't that the last thing Kaiba did before ending up comatose?

 

* * *

 

Thursday, Mokuba's decision to follow Katsuya to Bakura's was quite surprising. Mostly because out of everyone who had been present the day before, he'd been the most affected by the prospect of comatose game players. It was a little too similar to Seto's condition than comfortable, and personally Katsuya told himself, if it wasn't for the fact that Bakura hadn't been in school that day and needed homework delivered, he wouldn't even be there knocking on his apartment door. Either way, after all that the kid had ended up questioning him about the day before it was a little alarming to have him standing there with him.

 

Mokuba stood nervously beside the group, occasionally sending a glance to Katsuya as the teen knocked. "Here it is," he said, taking a deep breath. Nothing was wrong, nothing was wrong... He swallowed, attempting to calm himself down after thoughts of the day before came to mind. Comas... No way that was actually happening! "Time to prove that those comas were nothing but freak accidents!"

 

Though in the back of his mind he somehow felt like he wasn't so sure they were... Nonetheless, they all smiled when Bakura answered the door. "Yugi! Everyone... You guys..." The albino held the door almost shut, peering through with a pale and nervous expression. He certainly looked like he had seen better days. He was probably coming down with a cold or something, Katsuya justified quietly. Maybe he should just head back, hand over the homework and leave now, so that he wouldn't get reamed out by a random butler for giving Mokuba anything contagious. Just get them out of there-

 

The boy beat him too even trying, instead looking up to the blond with a somewhat nervous grin. A silent note of _'it's fine_ ' was passed along, his face almost forced into a smile. 'I'm fine,' he seemed to silently say, and with that the blond put a smile on his face as well. Well, if he insisted after all. Nothing to worry about... "Hey!" The smile grew into a grin as he gave a small wave, attempting to bring more positivity into the situation. "We were worried about yeh at school, thought maybe we scared yah off 'r somethin'," Or something... "So... Other than bringing yer homework by, we came to play with you Bakura!" A normal game.

 

That would be nice. "Yeah," Yugi added, grinning. "Lets play Monster World!" Someone had his mind on something. Then again, he was looking forward to it as well. Bakura instantly reeled back however, shaking his head.

 

"You can't," he shouted, sounding almost as though simply mentioning the game had doomed them all. "You guy's shouldn't have-"

 

He cut off, expression changing completely as Katsuya narrowed his eyes. Ok...

 

That wasn't normal. That wasn't normal in any way, and he couldn't have been the only one to notice. Bakura's hair almost stood on end with that 'cut', his expression going completely blank for a brief second. "Welcome," he said, eyes seemingly sharper than before as he smiled. "I'm so happy you came, come in!" That smile... He shook his head, shaking it off. Stop being paranoid, he told himself as the others cheered. His friends didn't see anything- so it was nothing! Besides, Yugi was the one with weird personality switches, and it was unique to him. ...Right?

 

"In that case," he said with a wider than normal grin. "We're coming in!" Nothing was wrong! Maybe being on security for Kaiba was screwing with his head... He'd have never had these thoughts before right? The teen walked inside, taking off his shoes before following Bakura further into the home. The others followed behind, Mokuba looking around the apartment with evident interest. It was small, but for someone like Bakura- who lived alone- it was more than enough space to live in.

 

"Woaaaah... It'd be cool to live here alone..." As Katsuya laughed at that, they followed Bakura to a separate room in the apartment, listening to the albino as he spoke.

 

"I had a feeling you guys would come," he said with an eerily dark smile. "Because we're friends..." Ok, how did Bakura manage to make that sound so damn scary? "Actually," he added, moving to the side to let the others in, "I already set the game up!" And wait, why did he do that if he was so intent on them _not playing_ before, for that matter? Katsuya quickly smacked his paranoid side back again, instead following the others into the room. Immediately he and the others were greeted to an enormous board set up, eyes wide.

 

"Woaah! Sweet!" A village, a forest, and was that a castle way at the back? He was beginning to look forward to this he thought, looking down to see a similar expression on Mokuba's face. Apparently, so was the kid. Grins spread on both their faces as they moved in to inspect the multicoloured plastic table, before they turned to look at Bakura.

 

Bakura moved to the other side of the table, five chairs on their own end. "Come, take a seat!" The teen chuckled lightly, pulling out some materials from the side of the table. "Let's play a game of Monster World," he said with that same eerie smile. Katsuya's grin faded slightly as they were handed character sheets, Yugi shouting another cheer while they took their seats. Even with all the positivity and optimism he had for the game, that smile was way to creepy...

 

"Hey, Mokuba," he whispered, the boy turning as Bakura grabbed figurines from the shelf. "You're sure you're alrigh' with this... Righ'?" The boy rolled his eyes, frowning. Clearly years of living with his older sister had rendered him immune to the effects of a 'yangire smile'. Something that Bakura could probably emulate to a 'tee' knowing his luck.

 

Damn it. "Sheesh Katsuya-nii, it sounds more like you're scared..." His voice was kept to a whisper, like Katsuya's had been, and he turned back to the sheet he was looking over.

 

He raised his hands in 'defeat', shrugging. "Jus' askin..." It just... Set him off really. That smile was giving him the creeps... It wasn't a 'Bakura' smile at all not compared to what they'd seen the other day, and every time he saw it he got a feeling eerily similar to directly before 'Death-T'. But at the same time, now that Mokuba was so set on this, he couldn't just 'leave'. Not without likely doing something that would prove just what that smile meant at least.

 

"Well," Bakura said, handing the five pencils. "Are you ready to start playing?" A loud chorus of 'YEAH!' sounded through the room, Katsuya nodding with a somewhat nervous grin. Might as well try getting back into the mood he decided, grabbing his pencil.

 

Alright! "Let's go!" As his grin faltered yet again, he found himself watching Bakura with narrowed eyes. For a brief moment, he thought the teen was staring at Yugi's puzzle... The moment was lost however as Bakura moved back to the other side of the room, leaning back in his chair before opening a laptop up.

 

"Let me explain the rules," he began, still smiling. "The players are split into two groups; the DM, Dark Master, controls the monsters and evil creatures that lurk throughout the Monster World. As the DM, who I will of course be playing," a mental 'of course' being repeated by the paranoid half of Katsuya's brain, "My goal will be to stop the adventurers with the best of my ability. You five, the adventurers," Bakura continued, gesturing to the five, "Work as a team. Each of you will pick your character's race, class, and ability scores to defeat the DM! If all of you are defeated, I win... However, if you five manage to defeat the 'Boss Monster', YOU win." Why was it that no matter what, outside of his own interests in the game, he really... Really... Didn't want Bakura to win.

 

From the back, Honda muttered something about getting to kill things before Anzu elbowed him. Yugi laughed at the scene, nodding before turning to the others in order to explain the game further. "Monster World combines a board game with an RPG; him being the 'Dark Master' is like the 'Game Master' from older RPGs..." Dark Master, Game Master... Huh.

 

Anzu blinked, turning to the boy as Mokuba fussed over his character sheet. "Role Playing Game... You mean like the ones online," she asked with a blank look.

 

"I guess... I mean, video games are more common now, " Yugi began, propping his head on his hands. "But the original ones were played around a table."

 

From the other side Bakura nodded. "That's right! And do you know the meaning of Role Play?" the teen asked, looking towards the five with a dark grin. Katsuya had to narrow his eyes into a solid squint at the question; of course they did, they weren't idiots... Hell if anything, just knowing Kaiba increased the meaning of the word ten-fold. But that look he was getting...

 

Hihhhh...

 

"Playing a role," Bakura continued. "You have to _become_ the character! By getting inside the mind of the character and acting our your part, the players can enter an imaginary world! It's the original virtual reality," he said with a smile, not helping Katsuya's suspicions in anyway. "That, is the true beauty of this game!"

 

Mokuba turned to Katsuya, frowning. "Neh, Katsuya-nii, does Bakura seem different to you?" he asked, keeping his voice down lest the others hear the 'nii' part.

 

He frowned slightly. "I've been wonderin' that for a while now..." And different was putting it very, very lightly in his opinion.

 

They were interrupted by Bakura again, who was now typing in the laptop. "Before we can play, you need to create your characters; I'll input the data into this laptop when you're done." He tossed down a list of races and classes, the five looking over them.

 

"See," Yugi was saying, showing Katsuya and the others the lists. "We each choose a race from the list, determining our abilities!" Alright, that sounded easy enough... As Mokuba looked at the list and began working on his character sheet again, Katsuya smirked. "Ooooh Honda! You should be a fairy," he said with a grin, not noticing the jump that Mokuba gave from behind the two. Honda scowled, snatching the pencil that Katsuya had almost used to write 'fairy' on his sheet with back.

 

"You're the fairy you moron," he shouted back, while Yugi was looking at the chart muttering to himself. (' _Maybe I'll be a half elf_ ', he was saying as he tugged his ears)

 

He laughed, shaking his head. "No way man, that race is made for you! It's girly, with tutus an' everything!" As he did this, he frowned, Honda having grown extremely pale as he looked behind the blond. "Oi... Honda?" Now what was with that face-

 

"Nice to see what you think, _KATSUYA-NII!_ " There was a loud smack noise, and the blond rubbed his head as Mokuba slammed his own sheets down across it.

 

"OW!"

 

"Did he just say..." As the others turned among themselves to discuss the use of 'nii' in Katsuya's name (Not to mention the use of the first name in general), the teen turned to glare at Mokuba. Said boy was working on his character sheet furiously, apparently doing all he could to ignore him. It was about that moment that Katsuya realized Mokuba had picked 'fairy' for a race, and just about slammed his face into the table for being a moron. Screw the swatting, at least he knew why the brat did it...

 

"M-Mokuba, I didn' mean.."

 

"Shut up, Katsuya-nii." Idly, the blond heard the others mutter something about ' _again,' 'why is he calling him big brother...' 'weeeeeeird...'_ Yeah yeah, get over it...

 

Bakura merely watched them with a smirk, cutting the conversations short. "Once you've decided on your race," he said as he typed at the laptop, "You need to choose your class."

 

While Mokuba marked off 'rogue' for his, Katsuya grinned. "Definitely pickin' warrior for this!" Sword and shield, all the way!

 

Beside him, Honda nodded. "A magic gunman doesn't sound too bad either!"

 

He looked down the list of weapons, still grinning. "I'm gonna use this one, and this one..." That sword... That dagger looked pretty powerful too...

 

"Katsuya-nii, you don't have enough money to start with that!" Nhhhh whatever.

 

While Bakura gave them an odd smile, recording the data as they rolled character scores, Anzu turned to Mokuba with an odd look. "Mokuba-kun.. I've been wondering..."

 

She was interrupted by Honda, who leaned in as well. "Since when did you call Jonouchi by his first name?"

 

Anzu rolled her eyes. "Actually, I was more wondering why you said Katsuya- _nii_." From the side, Katsuya blinked. What would the excuse here be...

 

The boy frowned, turning away. "Like I want to tell any of you..." Ah, of course. That was Mokuba for you.

 

As the woman huffed, Katsuya merely rubbed his head. "Errr... Right... Hey Bakura! We're done here!" The albino took the sheets, looking them over as he typed the rest of the information into the computer.

 

"Very good... You rolled fairly decent ability scores as well..." He looked up, Katsuya holding back a shudder as that odd smile came back. "Okay then," he said, grabbing the five figurines he'd set to the side. "Let me put the final touches on your miniatures!" He waved them over to look at the screen, taking a snap-shot of each of them to go with the small character profiles. Katsuya watched as they appeared on the screen, the others staring for a moment while Bakura worked on the miniatures.

 

Yugi's came first; he had indeed chosen a half-elf Katsuya noted, and had stuck with his real name before taking the 'Beast Tamer Class' and playing with no weapons as a result. His own character was second- "'Joey'," Mokuba said with a raised eyebrow. "You named your character 'Joey'?" He merely shrugged (He liked the name at least.), as the human and decently armed warrior came on screen a moment before switching over to Anzu. Anzu as well opted to go with her own name, though she'd picked elf for a race. The character was armed with a staff, magician being the class of choice, and she notably had the lowest hitpoint count of all the characters there. To contrast that however, she had the highest 'magic point' count...

 

Which made sense he supposed. Fourth was Honda's; he'd named his 'Hiroto', his given name. Like Katsuya's character it was human, and the teen had apparently picked 'Magic Gunman' after all. Wielding, of course, a 'magic gun'. Which just sounded silly right now, but then again so did 'Magic Gunman'. Lastly, appearing on the screen just as Bakura came back with the miniatures, was Mokuba's fairy rogue. By far the quickest of the groups it was also, as they realized when they were handed the

palm-sized figurines, the shortest.

 

"WOW," Katsuya said as he looked his own warrior figure over. "You made these look just like us!" Like... Exactly like them. Hmm. He quickly regretted saying this as Bakura gave them that 'smile' again, the blond tuning out the shouts of agreement from the others.

 

"Yes," Bakura said, Katsuya resisting the urge to shudder, grab Mokuba, and get the fuck out of there now. "I pride myself on my attention to detail in games... Now then," he said as the others returned to their seats, placing the figures at the 'start' position. "Now that all of the data is in, these numbers will make all the difference in a life or death fight. As the DM, I make the critical rolls after all..." He continued smiling, Katsuya wondering if he was seriously the only one freaking out about that look. He...

 

He couldn't be right? He was the guy who _didn't_ catch these sorts of things wasn't he?

 

"Alright... It's all ready! Let the adventure begin! GAME START!"

 

Katsuya looked over the board as they placed their pieces, frowning. "Heyyyy wait a minute... Where are th' other pieces," he said with a scowl. "There's not a single enemy monster in sight!"

 

Beside him, Mokuba shook his head and sighed. "Katsuya-nii," he explained as he leaned over the table, "The monsters appear depending on what you're doing; we haven't done anything yet!"

 

"Come to think of it," Honda said as he crossed his arms and leaned back, "We don't know much about this 'world' at all..."

 

Katsuya nodded in agreement, frowning. "Yea, like who's th' enemy or what's th' point of th' game!" Come to think, he probably should have figured that part out first. Whoops.

 

Across from the boys, Anzu snapped her fingers. "The town," she shouted, before pointing at it. "You go to a town to get information in an RPG don't you?"

 

Beside the woman, Yugi nodded. "Anzu's right! Let's go to the town first!"

 

"Good idea," Mokuba said, turning as Bakura nodded. The teen typed something into the computer, motioning for Mokuba to remove the 'top' of the village and set it aside.

 

"Very good," he said as he regained the eerie smile from before. "You take five turns to enter the village..." The group moved their pieces forwards, the village's 'removal' revealing a bar and inn of sorts.

 

"WOW," Yugi shouted, leaning in with wide eyes. "You take off the village model and there are people inside!" Mokuba and Katsuya also leaned in, staring with equally shocked expressions. "Look at the detail," the boy said, shaking his head slightly. "How much time did these take to build..."

 

"Ok," Katsuya shouted as he moved his piece forwards. "Lets pull up to the bar and get some news!" As he moved it over to an old man, the others brought their pieces close as well. "Hey, you! Old man," he shouted, the bar figuring turning as soon as he said this. Ok... That was weird. Mentally shaking it off, he continued. "As you can see, we're _HIGHLY SKILLED ADVENTURERS_! Any way for us to make some dough?"

 

As Mokuba shook his head in his hands, Honda looked at Katsuya with a deadpan expression. "You start with money... We know nothing and you start with _MONEY_!" Hey, money did lots of things! Like... Buy better weapons. And stuff.

 

Ignoring the group, Bakura resumed his role as the DM. "At those words," he began, turning his attention to the village figurines, "The villager sends a glance your way, and sighs as he speaks."

 

Katsuya almost jumped as the old man seemed to actually do that, before settling back into character at his words. "If money could solve our problems," the figure said rather morosely, "I'd give you all I've got... But before you could claim your reward you'd be dead!"

 

The voice switched back over to Bakura, and Katsuya mentally shook himself over as the albino continued. "With that, the old man moves away from the bar..." Wait wait wait, that didn't tell him anything! And he wanted to figure out of he was hearing things or not!

 

"Hey hold on there old timer," Katsuya shouted, moving his piece towards the old man with a _clack-clack-clack_. "Sounds like you got a story! We're all ears!" Mokuba looked up at his friend with a nervous stare.

 

"Katsuya-nii, you're really into it..." As Honda nodded, Katsuya froze once more, ignoring their comments; shortly after Bakura spoke, the figurine moved again. Come to think, it looked like it was moving on its own the entire time. Yikes...

 

Maybe it wasn't something he ate...

 

It turned to face Katsuya's figurine, the blond in question staring at it oddly. "Until a few years ago," the 'old man' began, "This village was peaceful... But then the Dark Lord Zorc assassinated the king, and changed the castle into a den of evil!" Katsuya almost jerked back as the figurine's expression even seemed to change, before quietly telling himself it was a trick of the light. "After that, monsters began appearing in our peaceful valley... And many of my fellow villagers have fallen prey to them."

 

TERRIBLE. Er... For figurine-land he supposed. "WHAT?" Mokuba jumped as Katsuya leaned in, shouting. "They can't get away with that! ALRIGHT! We'll take care of Zorc! So..." He continued leaning in, lowering his voice. "Let's see some gold pieces! Cough 'em up!"

 

Mokuba shook his head, groaning and face-palming again as Anzu balked. "How mean!" It wasn't mean! It was payment! Payment! Honda as well shook his head, frowning.

 

"Sheesh Jonouchi, this game really brings out your bad side..." No it didn't! As he turned to answer to that with a frown, he tensed, listening as Anzu voiced his earlier suspicions.

 

"Hey, Yugi," she asked, pointing to the village. "Is there a speaker in there? It sounds like the old man's really talking..." _Anzu, it both looked and sounded like a lot more than a speaker._

 

Yugi merely shrugged, having apparently not noticed that himself. "In a tabletop RPG, characters other than the adventurers are acted out by the Game Master," he explained, looking back at the board. "They're called NPCs..."

 

She nodded, while Katsuya turned to look at Bakura with an odd expression. "Then Bakura must be throwing his voice," she said, looking back at the board.

 

"I guess," Mokuba said as he followed their gaze with a shrug. Yea... That was it. Because that creepy ass grin was telling him otherwise! (Not to mention the 'old man's expression right now.) He turned as the old man continued, finding it a little more difficult to really get into the game now.

 

"Hear me adventurers," the figure cried from behind the miniature bar table. "Before you start on your journey, you should speak with the man in the corner... He can tell you of the safest route to Zorc's mansion!"

 

The group looked at the figure in question, moving the pieces over to 'talk' to him. "Hey," Katsuya said as he moved it over, watching as the figure appeared to turn to face him with a questioning look. Hey, that looked like... Like... "AHAHAA!" He laughed, Honda following his gaze before joining in.

 

As Mokuba looked at the two in bewhilderment, Honda wiped a few tears from his eyes. "Oh god... Oh god the figure looks exactly like Karita..." The gym teacher! It looked exactly like-

 

The figurines words were probably what told him just what kind of mess they were in, particularly as he recalled Anzu's words earlier. ' _Did you hear,_ ' she'd said, voice filled with worry. ' _Karita-sensei is in a coma'._

 

"It's you," the figurine shouted, Katsuya finding himself frozen in shock. "Jonouchi! Honda!" Oh dear god he had to be hearing things.

 

"Hey, Katsuya-nii," Mokuba said with a frown. "Did someone just call you?" Great... So that wasn't him then? Just...

 

Great...

 

The others as well began looking down at the figurine, confused. "Save me you guys," 'Karita' was calling. "He turned me into a figurine!" As the others continued muttering, Katsuya stared in silent shock as Bakura seemed to give a deathly cold glare to the figurine in question. 'Karita' turned briefly, shaking considerably for a moment as he continued to mutter 'help, please' before finally caving. The figurine turned back to face the corner, seemingly in fear as he spoke again. "Z-Zorc castle," he muttered, Katsuya gulping as he connected the dots in his mind, "Is to the north outside the village... Stay out of the forest," he added, the figurine Karita shaking with fear, "It's full of monsters..."

 

"Got it," Katsuya said, voice fairly stiff compared to before. This was not good... Not good. If... Bakura was going to seal everyone in figurines... "Okay," he continued with a fairly nervous tone that had Mokuba looking at him with worried eyes. "Let's skip town and start hackin'! Lets... Lets head for Zorc Castle!" It was really hard to keep excited about this game now. _Really_ hard actually. Sure he hated Karita but...

 

Fact was for all the guy's harshness, he was actually really fair about that class. Which meant he did alright in it, since Gym wasn't something he really had to pay much attention in. This was not good...

 

Not good at all he thought as the group moved forwards, thoughts rendering him uncharacteristically silent. But if he said anything now, he could almost be certain that Bakura would just do whatever it was he'd planned to do anyways. Damn it... Damn it!

 

"Alright," Bakura said as they entered the 'field'. "You've just entered an area where there's a danger of random monster encounter... From now on," he continued, grabbing something from beside the laptop, "There's a judgment roll every turn, to determine if monsters will appear. We will use these, 10-sided dice!"

 

Mokuba blinked, looking at the dice from his seat. "Ten sided dice huh..."

 

Beside him, Honda raised an eyebrow. "Never seen dice like that before..." _He_ had though; when Mokuba was showing him a crap load of dice games a few days before. (The kid had magic dice hands, really. Magic.) The group turned as Bakura continued, eerie smile back on his face once more.

 

"The area you're in right now has a monster encounter of 30%," he stated, before gesturing to the die. "The roll will be made with those two dice. The white die represents the single digit. The red die however, represents the 'tens' digit... Giving you a number between 00 and 99. If," he continued, "The outcome is between 31 and 99, you will have avoided running into any monsters." He rattled the dice in his hands. "As the DM, I make the roll." The dice clattered to the ground, and Bakura continued. "The judgment roll is 21... A monster appears; level 3 goblin!"

 

Mokuba grinned as a figure appeared seemingly out of no where on the board. "Ah! A monster appeared!" The dice were handed to him, and he grinned; being the fastest character, he was the first to move.

 

"I was getting bored," Honda said with a grin. "Now the game really starts! Dog pile!" As Bakura explained the rules of attack, Mokuba shook the dice and dropped them.

 

"The rogue rolls," he shouted, before looking at the dice. "13!"

 

Bakura nodded, typing a few things into the laptop. "Based on the speed and strength of the rogue, taking into account flight, a roll of 40 or less kills the goblin..." He typed a few more things in as Mokuba grinned, his piece seemingly rushing through the board to take out the goblin. Even Honda seemed to be fairly excited about it, regardless of the fact that he didn't get to make an attack.

 

"Alright! The goblin is defeated!" He looked at the others as they cheered, Katsuya attempting to lighten up even with the prospect of loosing their souls/bodies/whatever it was Bakura would take on the line.

 

"The closer the roll to double zero," he began, "The more damage you do to an enemy. If you roll a 99 however," Bakura said darkly, "You have to take a penalty..." A penalty? Katsuya gulped, and the group of figurines continued forwards. Why did he have a feeling he knew what that penalty was... A really bad thing."Suddenly, you stop," Bakura stated with his DM voice, motioning to a figurine lying in the center of the field. "As up ahead, you see someone lying across your path." So they did. A cloaked, heavily robed figure just lying there in rags.

 

Mokuba leaned forwards, blinking. "Ah... He's passed out..."

 

He turned as Bakura continued, listening. "Without coming closer, you can't tell much about the prostrate figure lying before you. Is he alive? Is he dead? You can find out... Or you can move on without helping him. What do you do?"

 

Anzu frowned. "I feel sorry for him... Let's help!" She pointedly ignored Mokuba's statement of ' _you can't help if he's dead.._.', turning to the others.

 

Beside her, Yugi frowned. "It's kind of weird... It could be a trap.." Scratching his head, Katsuya sighed. Trap or no trap. Well, only one way to find out really...

 

"Right! Leave this to me then," he said, mentally gulping. If he allowed himself to be scared, then what would happen when they really did lose their lives? Besides... If Bakura saw that he was afraid, it could make things worse. "First," he said as he moved the figure close, "I'll poke him with my sword!"

 

Maybe if it was an enemy in disguise he'd blind him or something. Hopefully. Eh, who knew. "The warrior prods the strange person with his sword," Bakura said calmly, the figure moving to do as he said. "Oh," he continued, a feigned tone of surprise in his voice. "He moves slightly. It appears to be a young man... He looks at you, and seems very afraid." Ok, not enemy then. Katsuya frowned, looking down at the figurine. Probably another actual person...

 

Damn it, how was this even possible? And what kind of sick game was this anyways? "Hey you," he shouted down at it. "We're not y'r enemy! Nothin' t' be scared of!" Message with double meaning; he would get these guys out of there. ...Somehow.

 

The figurine looked down for a moment, before turning to the 'group'. "Please help me," he cried, before continuing as per the script. "A monster attacked me in the forest and stole my treasure!"

 

Honda smirked as the 'stranger' said this, looking over at Katsuya. "Treasure huh? Well, that should make you happy..." Ignoring the fact that Katsuya wasn't responding to that, he turned as the figurine spoke again.

 

"I was on my way to give it to the hero of the village," he said with wide worried eyes. "I had a treasure, a holy sword, the only thing that can truly defeat Zorc!" That statement got a few people's attention, and Mokuba leaned over the table with wide eyes.

 

"A sword that can beat Zorc?"

 

"Please," the figurine continued. "I beg you! Get back the treasure!"

 

The others turned to Bakura, waiting for him to continue. "Do you respond to the young man's request?" he asked, not taking his eyes off the figurines.

 

Anzu frowned, looking over at the others. "I don't know... That villager told us to stay away from the forest..." Oh.. Yea, that was right... At the same time though...

 

Aaaaaah damn it, he wasn't good at this kind of crap! The youngest of the group nodded, while Honda raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, but we're talking the 'only thing' that can beat Zorc here!"

 

Yugi frowned, looking to the others nervously. "I don't know... Can it really be that easy to find a key weapon to defeat Zorc..?" Pausing for a moment, he looked at the others before turning back to Bakura. "Alright," he said. "Take us to the forest!" Wait, he didn't even say anything- ...Oh well, too late now. Hadn't it been three against two though? Or was it a tie? He should probably be paying more attention to the 'game' than to Bakura now that he thought about it.

 

The figurine nodded. "Thank you very much! I'll come with you," he said, Bakura continuing from there as the pieces were moved towards a shadowed forest area.

 

"Okay... You heed the young man's plea and head for the forest!" As the board flipped to reveal an even darker form of the woods in the place of a flurry of trees, he continued. "The shadowy green leaves rise around you, blocking the sun. This area has a monster encounter rate of 80%!" The albino ignored Yugi's incredulous shout of '80%?', rolling the dice. "Judgment roll! 5!" He turned to the others, shaking his head in false worry. "Not a good roll for you! The closer to 0, the stronger the monsters that appear! Five monsters emerge from the trees," he cried, the figurines appearing from the board with a snarl. "The players attack first!" Well at least something went right.

 

"Let's get them," Mokuba cried, shaking the dice as they were handed to him. He quickly frowned however, wincing. "Ack... 74..."

 

Bakura logged the numbers in, before speaking. "The rogue flies behind the first monster, only to be caught and forced to flee! Next!" The dice were handed to Katsuya, and the blond shook them. Come on come on... Low numbers...

 

"Alright... Second swing! I throw the 10-sided dice... GO!" They clattered the ground, and he groaned as well. Why was his luck so crappy! "82!"

 

In front of them, Bakura seemed to show no other reaction than his usual stare. "Bad luck," he shouted. "'Joey' needed a roll of 30 or less to hit Beega! Not only does he miss," he stated, Katsuya scowling as his figurine charged the beetle-like-monster, "He trips and falls, rendering him unable to fight next turn!" Stupid stupid... What kind of a name was 'BEEGA', honestly...

 

"Ooooh," Honda said as Yugi and Mokuba looked up at the teen. "That sucks... Right," he continued as he took the dice. "Let me handle this one!" The dice clattered to the ground, and he watched the figurines expectantly.

 

To the group's slight surprise, Honda's figure blasted right through one of the monsters; "21," Bakura said as the struck monster vanished completely. "Very good, one monster is down!" Well hey! That wasn't too bad at all! Ignoring the fact that these figurines were clearly moving on their own now...

 

Yugi grinned, watching as the figure of 'Hiroto' holstered his gun with a smirk. "You did it!" He grabbed the dice, nodding partially to himself as he rolled. "My turn now!" The dice clattered to the ground, and Bakura inputted the numbers once more.

 

"25! The beast tamer can touch one monster with spell hands," he began, a pair of hands appearing on the board as he spoke, "And make him into an ally... The hand power has a success rate of 50%," he continued, inputting another number before continuing. "You succeed!"

 

He grinned, pointing at a round, sheep like monster on the board. "Okay! I choose you!" The other monsters reeled back as the 'hands' wrapped around their ally, before they cleared to reveal a much cheerier looking creature.

 

"The evil has disappeared from Poki," Bakura stated as the monster moved to stand by the Beast Tamer's side. "He is now your ally!" For a brief moment, Katsuya had to raise an eyebrow as the monster let out a small 'Poki!' Ok... He wasn't going to even think about how the monsters had 'souls' too...

 

And what was this thing a pokemon? The others looked at the field, Mokuba frowning slightly. "There's still three monsters left though..."

 

Anzu nodded, grabbing the dice. "I'll take it from here!" As Yugi shouted a 'go for it!', she dropped the die only for Bakura to stare in surprise. Hell everyone was staring, he was sure.

 

"00!" he shouted, before inputting the data. "Amazing! A super critical hit! This means that Anzu is able to use a top level spell regardless of apprentice status!" As he said this, Anzu's figurine raised its arms in the air, a large explosion appearing on the board as the remaining monsters vanished. It was astonishingly realistic. The reaction could only be summed up with one thing really-

 

"Wowww," Yugi cried. "You blew away three monsters! You did it Anzu!"

 

Mokuba as well stared, Honda and Katsuya merely blinking. "Hehhh... So that's what a super critical hit can do... Well," he said as he leaned over the board. "Let's keep going..!" He frowned however, as the 'stranger' began to laugh. What...

 

As Mokuba cut himself off, Katsuya had to frown slightly himself. Alright... Why was their party member suddenly cackling villainously...

 

The group reeled back as the figurine began to physically shift, laughing. "So you are the five heroes who would defy me," he said, Katsuya growing pale as Bakura's expression grew dark and smug. "You fell for my trap and entered the forest of death," the figurine continued with a cackle. "This will be your grave!" As the others stared Bakura continued, the frightening smirk never leaving his face.

 

"What's this?" he said, the five figurines watching in apparent horror. Bakura's voice held a false image of shock, along with an almost mocking tone. "The young man's form changes and grows before your very eyes... For he is none other than..." Fuck. Fuck fuck _fuck fuck fuck_ , Katsuya thought. Don't finish that- "The Dark Master Zorc!" AUUUUGHH. Damn it!

 

"Zorc!" Mokuba and Yugi's jaws dropped, as did the others. They ran into the boss already! The characters were level one, how were they supposed to beat that! Katsuya watched in horror as the Zorc figurine, a good five times larger than their own, continued to laugh madly.

 

"Before you die," he cackled, grotesque face shifting into an unreadable expression. "There's one thing you should know! There is no sword in the world that can defeat ME!" Well wasn't that just wonderful. As Zorc continued laughing, Bakura looked at the others with narrowed eyes, before he grabbed the dice.

 

"The players," he began, smirking, "Completely deceived by his lies, are caught with their defences down! Therefore, Zorc takes the first attack... And his success is determined by this roll!" The dice fell.

 

The feeling from before came back all to violently, and briefly he wondered if he was going to be sick. Something was going to go wrong... Right now, something was... As the dice clattered to the ground, spinning against the other in slow motion, Katsuya felt that cold feeling in his stomach increase to just about every part of his body.

 

"Mokuba," he whispered, the boy looking up at him with a frown. "We need to leave..." Screw their chances; those chances had just jumped out of the window like Gozaburo on a bad day. "... _Now_."

 

The boy's frown deepened, and he looked back at the table a moment. "Now?" he asked, still frowning as the dice continued to spin, "What... What do you mean, Katsuya-n-" He turned as the dice finished rolling, the rest of the group staring in shock. Shit... No...

 

Shit not those numbers! While the others were merely groaning Katsuya wondered if all the blood had drained from his face just yet. Not this-!

 

"00," Bakura shouted, turning to the players with a wicked grin. "Super Critical hit! Zorc's shadow power assaults the players, and his target is _YOU_ ," he cried, pointing directly at the one in the middle. "MOKUBA!" The boy blinked with shock, watching as Bakura continued to grin maliciously. No...

 

SHIT SHIT _SHIT SHIT_!

 

" _ **MIND DOLL**_!" Katsuya watched with horror as Mokuba's body went tense a moment. For a brief second, it was as though he'd been shocked still; his eyes widened, his hair stood on end...

 

And just as quickly, those same eyes lost their colour and the boy's body keeled to the ground, Katsuya grabbing for him as he fell. No... This was almost exactly what Kaiba was like, no...

 

NO! Katsuya turned to Bakura, eyes wide with rage. "YOU _BASTARD_!" The others jumped at the outburst, staring at him in shock. "WHAT DID YOU DO!"

 

"Sheesh Jonouchi, calm down," Honda said as he stared at his friend with fairly wide eyes. "We'll call a hospital, he probably just fainted..."

 

The blond turned on Honda, snarling. "You call that FAINTING? His eyes are OPEN you moron! _LOOK AT HIM_!"

 

Before anyone could respond to that, a tiny, scared voice came from the table, the others turning with shock. "K-Katsuya-nii..." Katsuya froze, turning to look at the table with horror as the small, lead figurine form of Mokuba's fairy character looked back at him. "Katsuya-nii! W... What... What happened! Why is everything..." He stared, slowly blinking before he moved his gaze back from the table to the albino across the table. Seto was going to slaughter him when she woke up, Katsuya thought to himself as he faced Bakura with wide and rage filled eyes. Cut him into tiny pieces that no one would ever find, if he was lucky.

 

But he was going to put the white haired bastard before him through hell before that happened.

 


	18. Chapter 16 | One Inch Terror

He was pretty sure that the shit hit the fan when Bakura pointed at them and yelled 'Mind Doll'. He didn't know what it meant obviously, but given that Mokuba's reaction was to collapse in a state not unlike his older sister's, and adding to the fact that 'mind doll' sounded a little like 'mind crush', (which was apparently what Yugi had said when putting Kaiba in that state)...

 

The state of 'soullessness', the coma-like state that Bakura had said just the other day was what his friends had all entered was all too familiar, and it was clearly the state that Mokuba was in right now. The others were shaking his body, trying to wake him up. Katsuya was just staring Bakura down with horror and rage as the albino chuckled. "You bastard... What did you _DO_!"

 

Bakura merely chuckled as the others turned to follow his gaze, smirking. "What did I do..? I'm just the DM... I just followed the rules to keep the game going..."

 

He growled in response, gritting his teeth before continuing his verbal attack. "BULLSHIT! _WHAT DID YOU DO_!" He ignored the nervous tug that Yugi was giving him, the almost frightened stares of shock the others were giving him. Instead, he continued to keep his eyes set forward, watching as Bakura continued to smirk. The teen looked down at the board, almost daring the others to follow. And for a good few moments, Katsuya was hesitant to follow his gaze.

 

"Well... I suppose I should tell you that this game you're playing," Bakura added, "Is the ultimate role playing game..." His grin grew, Katsuya clenching his fists as he shook. "I told you didn't I? In role-playing games, you have to become the characters! You transcend reality to become the people of an imaginary world and live the adventure that unfolds!"

 

Katsuya gripped the sides of the table, ignoring the gasps of the others. "TELL ME! What did you _DO_ to Mokuba!" He should have just refused to come in, done something, anything to keep everyone from coming in the room! And instead...

 

Laughter filled the room from Bakura's side, and he looked back at the table. "Don't worry," he said, tone far to pleased than could be healthy. "Mokuba is alive and well! ...In Monster World..." The moment he said that, the entire group could do nothing but look down. And conveniently enough, at that exact moment if you listened carefully, you could hear someone...

 

"K-Katsuya-nii..?" The blond's eyes widened as he looked to the forest area of the board, Mokuba's figurine slowly turning around. Oh god. The figurine looked around, as though confused. "What is this... Where is everyone..." They looked up, eyes widening as the others stood shocked into silence. "Why..." He stumbled backwards with dawning realization, looking up in terror as those around the table drew back in horror. "Why is everyone so... So... ...Gn... YAA _AAAAAHH_!"

 

Anzu and Yugi leaned over the table, staring down in shock as the tiny, whispering scream sounded over the table. "I wasn't hearing things..!"

 

Yugi nodded in agreement as the woman continued. "The rogue figurine just screamed..." Beside them, Katsuya grit his teeth, eyes caught half way between a frown and an expression of horrified worry.

 

"Mokuba!" Katsuya leaned past the others as the figure of the boy shouted up for help, his eyes wide with panic. "Mokuba you hang in there! I'm gonna get you out!" As he said this, Bakura's laughter became louder. That rat... That pasty, white haired rat!

 

"It's like I said," the albino began, grinning. "In this game, the player's fate is entirely decided by the roll of the dice... When Dark Master Zorc's attack is the super critical 00," he began, the group watching as 'Mokuba' shrank back under the Boss Monster's gaze, "Or if the player rolls a fumble of 99, the player's soul will be sealed into their figurine by the power of darkness!" More laughter, and he continued to smirk. "The only way to retrieve his soul is to defeat the Dark Master Zorc..."

 

The dice were snatched up, Bakura looking at Katsuya with a raised eyebrow. "You filthy, lying bastard..." His eyes narrowed as he looked towards the 'Boss', and he continued. "I'm gonna take him out now! Go!" The others were shouting...

 

All he could hear was a dull roar as he tossed them to the ground however, thoughts clinging to getting everyone as far away as possible. As the dice clattered to the ground however, he only just realized what it was that the others were shouting at him about. "Jonouchi! Jonouchi-kun," Yugi shouted as Bakura turned to face the blond with a wicked grin. He found out fairly quick what the panic was about.

 

"Now Jonouchi... It wasn't your turn to attack!," the teen began, Katsuya tensing. Not his turn? But he was supposed to go right after- His eyes widened as Bakura continued, the teen across from them continuing to grin madly. "Remember? Your last move had you out of play this turn! Let me show you what happens when you break the rules of the game!" Shit...

 

Bakura's finger was aimed towards him. Shit...

 

" _ **MIND DOLL**_ !" Shit...

 

He closed his eyes, bracing himself for the inevitable only to frown. Nothing... Nothing happened...

 

Instead, he heard shouts. "ANZU!" What? Katsuya looked at Anzu's fallen body in shock, turning back to the front where Bakura was scowling. Anzu had... He watched as Yugi caught the woman shouting before turning to the board. "Anzu! ANZU!" Yugi screamed in a panic before turning to Bakura with wide eyes, Katsuya clenching his fists. "Nn..."

 

Bakura snorted, watching as the dice continued to spin and the magician's figurine moved to attempt to comfort Mokuba. "It seems your friend decided to take the blow for you... But all for nothing I'm afraid!" They looked down at the dice, Katsuya inwardly groaning. 99...

 

_FUCK._..

 

Of all the rolls he could get, he got a FUMBLE! "Not only is your gaming etiquette absolutely atrocious Jonouchi, your roll is the worst possible!" He grinned madly, pointing to the blond. " _PREPARE YOURSELF FOR THE SAME FATE AS YOUR FRIENDS_! **Mind Doll**!" This time, there was nothing to take the brunt of the attack for him. For a brief moment, everything went black. He felt weak, felt himself slip away... And then as he heard Yugi shout his name, everything abruptly came back. Trees made of plastic towered around them, Zorc's figurine standing even taller than that and suddenly, the ceiling looked a lot farther away than it had before.

 

"W-WHAT THE!" He looked himself over, finger-less hands still gripping a sword and shield. Wide eyes, no nose (Erk.)... His 'shoes' and 'clothes' were his body and feet, rounded and simplified. He continued to stare at himself, before watching as Mokuba and Anzu turned towards him.

 

Anzu held her head, unable to move as Mokuba could with her legs glued in position. "Oh Jonouchi," She cried, shaking her head. "Not you too!"

 

"Katsuya-nii," Mokuba shouted as he ran over, the figurine's ability of flight allowing him to move around even now it seemed. The boy looked up at him, still a good 'head' shorter than the others even as a figurine. Painted eyes left little room for hidden emotions, and it looked as though the boy was doing all he could to not just break down right there. "Katsuya-nii..! What do we do?"

 

He winced, arms somewhat holding the boy close as Mokuba cried. Scared... This entire thing had just sprung up on him and it was probably now just as bad as the 'CapMon' prison all those months ago. This was the 'power of darkness'. "I don't know... I don't..." He bit his lip, only to find that the form of the figurine had no teeth. Damn it... Damn it! "I'm sorry..." If he'd said something, anything instead of pushing those thoughts back, or wondering when it would be too late... "So sorry..."

 

And now that it really was... Anzu looked up at Yugi as he shouted down at them, eyes wide with fear. "Yugi... Yugi... What do we do!" If only he could answer that. They looked up, watching as the small teen steeled himself and turned to Bakura. "Bakura..." Yugi's face was red with anger, and one could only guess where this was going to go.

 

Bakura, however, did not seem one bit affected by this. "Hnhnhnhnhn... Think before you act Yugi," the albino said with a smile. "If you and Honda become figurines as well, there won't be anyone left to roll the dice..." The grin grew as the others tensed, and Bakura continued. "If that happens, then the game is automatically over! And you five will be trapped in this world forever..." As Mokuba drew closer to Katsuya, the blond repressed a shudder. Not good. Not good... "Until the next time I use you in a game of course..." Like hell he wanted that! He bit his lip again, before looking upwards.

 

"There's no choice... We have to fight!" Anzu nodded, and he looked down at Mokuba. The boy was staring at the ground, silent. They had to do something. Anything! "C'mon kid... We gotta do this..." They had to! "You gotta make it out, even if we don', so you can see Kaiba alright?" Though they were sure as hell trying for a 'perfect score' in escaping. Mokuba looked up at Katsuya a moment, before nodding hesitantly and drawing back to take his place on the board.

 

"...O... Okay, Katsuya-nii..." He was still obviously scared (Hell _he_ was scared), but nonetheless... If the past was any sign, he'd be strong. Enough to pull through this for the sake of anyone else he knew.

 

Something that he needed to do as well. "Yugi," the blond shouted as he looked up. Nothing else to do... Nothing but this! And they'd do it! "Roll the dice in our place!" As the teen nodded, Bakura continued laughing.

 

"Very good," he cheered, giving a false applause. "Continue the game! The Magic Gunman can attack Zorc this turn!" Honda gritted his teeth, taking the dice as the albino continued. "Though I should warn you... On any turn this battle, you might be frozen in fear by Zorc's powerful aura!" Wait what? _They_ didn't have to deal with that! What was Bakura doing, pulling rules out of a hat? "For that," he continued, watching as Honda shook the dice with a scowl. "We have to check the gunman's courage score. Roll the dice; if you roll less than 70%, then you can conquer your fear and move first... But," he said with a dark grin, chuckling as he spoke. "If you fail, Zorc makes the first move... Now, roll! Let the dice fall where they will!"

 

Honda gripped the dice firmly, scowling. "You gotta be kidding! Me," he shouted, his shaking fist giving him away. "Afraid! I'm not afraid of you," he continued, finally dropping the dice. "My hand is shaking with anger Bakura!" Ohhh Honda... Great guy but that was not the best way to throw dice at all...

 

The DM merely smirked. "That's for the dice to say," he said as they spun.

 

"Go for it Honda," Yugi shouted as the dice clattered around on the table before coming to a stop. "You can do it!"

 

Apparently however, the dice had another idea. "94!" Shit, it was a missed turn then! Honda reeled back from the table, fists clenched tight. "This is _BULLSHIT_! I'm not scared of a damn figurine!" They knew that, but regardless...

 

Bakura simply laughed, smirking as he took the dice. "Hahaha... There is no 'You', Honda," he said with a grin, "There is only your character! The Magic Gunman is frozen in fear," the teen continued with a laugh, grabbing his dice. "He curses himself for his cowardice!"

 

"You dirty fucking-"

 

"Zorc winds the initiative," Bakura continued, laughing. "Shadow Power! Attack Roll!" The dice clattered to the ground, and Yugi and Honda both stared in shock. Impossible! This was impossible! Katsuya had a feeling he knew what those looks meant...

 

"WHAT," Yugi shouted, turning on Bakura angrily. " _TWO_ super criticals! Bakura," he roared, sounding only a shy bit less like his 'dark self'. "What did you do to the dice!"

 

Probably nothing good Katsuya thought, as the albino simply laughed. If everything else going on was any sign. Turning his hand on Honda, they watched powerlessly as the next 'player' was killed. "The dice don't lie," Bakura said with a smirk, before Honda's body fell to the floor. "Only one left! HAHAHAHAHA!"

 

"Honda!" The others turned as the 'Gunman's figure jerked to life, a 'shiver' running through it a moment. Abruptly however it began tensing with anger, Honda curling on himself as he curse himself.

 

"Damn it... Damn it!" he shouted, shaking his head. "Believe me! I wasn't afraid! Not a bit!"

 

Anzu sighed, looking over from where she stood. "We know Honda... We'll get out of this somehow

though, alright?" The others nodded, mostly keeping quiet as they attempted to calm down. All this crap going on...

 

Katsuya shook slightly with anger again, attempting to ease the situation by mentally picturing him beating Bakura to a pulp when this was over. Provided Yugi let him he supposed... After all, he dealt with Seto rather soundly. (Enough that he wouldn't be able to stomach punching the woman right now god damn it...) Speaking of the guy...

 

Above in the 'real world', Yugi was livid. "HONDA," he shouted, leaning over the table before turning to Bakura again. "You..."

 

"Well Yugi," Bakura said as he folded his hands over. "You're the only one left... Now you must roll the dice and move the pieces all on their own..." A dark smile came over him, and he looked the boy in the eye. "And before I forget..." Yeah, because Bakura forgot anything... "If the character's hit points reach 0, they WILL die! Not just in game... But in the real world!" _FUCK_. This was complete and utter...

 

AUGH! Zero hitpoints and they were dead? He watched as Mokuba drew back at that, before turning to look up at their 'opponent' with a hard gaze. They had between 12 and 25 points for that right? In that case, they'd just have to fight as hard as they could! Above him the conversation continued, and had the figurines been made with teeth he'd likely be grinding them right now.

 

"Be careful with the lives of your friends... Hnhnhnhnhn..." Katsuya looked up as Yugi grabbed the dice, the boy's eyes filled with worry. The lives of everyone were literally in his hands...

 

He swallowed, facing his friend with a confident stare. "You can do it Yug," he shouted, the other three nodding as they followed his gaze. "We know you can!"

 

"YEAH! Kill him!" Honda was shouting, Anzu sending up her own encouragements as Mokuba watched silently. They watched as Yugi's eyes widened, before he nodded. The DM in the meantime merely continued with that same eerie smile that got them into the mess.

 

"The battle continues," he stated, "The magic gunman gets one more chance to attack Zorc. Throw the dice Yugi!" Katsuya looked up as Yugi nodded, before the teen said something that had everyone staring in shock.

 

"Before that Bakura," Yugi shouted, holding his puzzle. "Transfer my soul to the miniature as well!" WHAT? The albino as well stared, caught completely off guard by the request. "Wha... What! What did you just say?" he shouted as he jerked back against his chair. "You _want_ to become a miniature!" For this one time, it looked like they were having the same reaction. W... What? What was Yugi doing?

 

"Yugi!" Mokuba looked up with wide and confused eyes, the others mimicking the expression. Why... Why was he doing this, if they were all there? "What are you doing!"

 

Yugi nodded, ignoring the cries of himself and the others. "I'll fight together with my friends on the board! If they're putting their lives on the line, then so will I!" Yeah, but who was going to roll the dice! Unless... Hang on, that's right, there were two... But that couldn't be it. Katsuya looked at the puzzle, frowning. He knew there were two Yugi's, but that couldn't possibly work with souls could it? If it did...

 

From across the table, Bakura studied his opponent's face a moment before shrugging. "Well... It would be easy to grant that wish... But if you, the last player becomes a miniature, who will throw the dice?" At the silence he got in response, he laughed. "Ah well... The DM is supposed to be of service to the players... In that case," he shouted, holding his hand out to Yugi. "I'll do as you say! And with this, it's GAME OVER!"

 

A gust of non-existent wind, and the group turned to watch as Yugi's figurine began looking around in confusion. Ignoring the absence of a 'thud' from Yugi's body, Katsuya turned to face his friend with a worried expression. "Aw Yugi... Yah didn' have to do that..."

 

Mokuba nodded, looking at the teen with wide eyes. "Yeah... Who..." He choked, looking over to the slightly taller figurine and frowning. "Who'll roll the dice now..?"

 

Before he could answer, they found themselves looking up at Bakura with angry stares. "AHAHAHAA! All the players have been turned into lead figurines," the albino shouted, looking down at them before moving to clean up the game. "A perfect victory for the dark mast-" He froze as the sound of chuckling came from the other side, the group below turning to look at Yugi's still moving body with wide eyes. Holy shit..

 

Holy fucking shit... There really were two souls...

 

The other Yugi crossed his arms, dice held between his fingers. "We were in the middle of a battle weren't we?" he said with a smirk, clearly relishing the look on Bakura's face. As he received nothing but silence in response, the smirk grew. "Well, I'm rolling... The Magic Gunman attacks Zorc!" They really were two souls but...

 

What the hell did that mean then? The dice clattered to the ground, Honda somehow knowing just what he rolled as he turned on Zorc with a grin. "I hit! '03'!" Drawing the gun from his holster, he shot at Zorc with a shout. "THUNDER GRENADE !" From the barrel of the gun came a solid beam of energy, burning a path forwards with no sign of stopping. The demon hissed as his left hand was blasted off, grabbing his wrist with a roar of pain as the others cheered.

 

"ALRIGHT! Nice shootin' tex!" The others grinned, Mokuba looking over at the fallen hand as it began to smoke into non-existence. He laughed, shaking his head with disbelief. After all...

 

The other Yugi never lost, so they were in the clear right? He never lost, even against his older sister, so clearly against this guy it'd be a piece of cake! "You hit him dead on," the boy said with a grin, the combined events going on around them becoming almost too much to really handle properly. "You _BLASTED HIS HAND CLEAN OFF_!" It was like a bizarre, twisted dream. Everything was just too unreal to actually be happening, and yet it couldn't be denied in the slightest.

 

Katsuya turned to the 'other Yugi', the real one following his gaze in silence. 'Two masters?,' the monster Yugi had tamed was muttering, and he grinned. Yeah. Two. "Hey Yugi," he shouted up, the teen looking back down in question. "Our lives are in your hands, got it? You gotta defeat Zorc!" He had to... It was all they had now!

 

The teen nodded, face stern as he looked them over. "I will! Now then," he said as he turned to Bakura. "Let's get on with the game!"

 

As the two 'real people' continued on with the game, Katsuya found himself shuddering with the self-imposed reminder of 'death'. "Hihhh..." He couldn't die here! He had to get Mokuba out first at least, so that if Kaiba ended up dying she didn't hunt him down as a ghost or something...

 

(Though he wouldn't mind seeing her again in person...)

 

He couldn't die, and neither could the others! Some of whom were voicing those thoughts. "I can't die looking like this," Honda was muttering, 'shirtless', caped figurine looking himself over in distaste. Yugi laughed nervously, he and Mokuba shaking their heads in response. Really, that wasn't the main problem...

 

Anzu as well rolled her eyes, crossing her arms at the statement. "Come on guys... We have to believe in Yugi... Other Yugi... Er..." She looked over at the 'small' Yugi, who merely laughed in response. "Oh whatever," she finished with a huff, Yugi continuing to laugh in response. They turned their attention back to the conversation above, listening as Bakura spoke with that same 'higher than thou' tone that was grating on just about everyone's nerves.

 

As Bakura finished speaking however, they quickly found themselves looking at Zorc's disembodied hand with shock and disgust. It seemed nothing was as easy as it should have been really... "Zorc's hand.." Mokuba drew back, kicking the hand that landed next to him away in question as it mutated and divided into piles of mush. "It's doing something!"

 

Katsuya swallowed as a pair of monsters appeared from the piles, shifting and changing until there was a large eyeball and some sort of dragon. He scowled, taking up a fighting stance of sorts as the monsters hissed angrily at them. "Yeah it's doin' somethin' alright, it just turned int' mosnters!"

 

Zorc laughed, the two monsters hissing with him. "Any piece of flesh cut from my body transforms into a monster under my command! AHAHAHAAA!"

 

"Shoot," Yugi said with a frown, 'Poki' floating up beside him with a worried look. "That's not fair at all..!"

 

The little guy appeared to cross his arms, turning to his 'team' sadly. "Pokii! Zorc is the source of all darkness," he began, soft voice barely audible behind the 'poki' noises he was making. "He'll continue to spawn them until you finish him once and for all!" Well wasn't that convenient...

 

As if to support this statement, the two monsters cackled and turned on them. "GWahahaa! Leave them to us Master Zorc," the dragon shouted, Katsuya grimacing in response. Talking monsters... That was...

 

That was pretty weird given it used to be Zorc's hand. On the bright side, it was probably for the best, as the demon nodded and crossed his arms. "Very well! Kill them!" _Dammmmn_ it...

 

"Running away Zorc," Yugi said with a frown, Mokuba nodding in agreement. As Zorc turned to loom briefly over the group, the 'fairy' gulped. Zorc was closest to him... But...

 

But he couldn't be scared, he reminded himself. Not if he was going to make it out of this! "Y-Yeah! Fight us right here!" The demon merely laughed, his toothy grin putting fear into each of their hearts.

 

"I have a special place prepared for our fight," he said, voice scraping on their ears. "Make your way to my castle while the fires of hatred still burn in you heart! If you CAN that is... AHAHAHAHA!"

 

With that he vanished from sight completely, as though he had never even existed. "Ghh... ASSHOLE," Katsuya shouted, Honda joining in the cursing as Anzu made to cover a fussing Mokuba's ears. "WE'LL GET TO YAH, _NO MATTER WHAT IT TAKES_!"

 

Honda nodded, scowling. "YOU'RE GOING DOWN ZORC! YOU HEAR THAT? DOWN!" The voice of the DM came over, and Mokuba jumped as his turn arrived. Gulping again, he fingered the twin daggers his figurine was armed with, before turning to the 'Other Yugi' with semi-trusting eyes. This was the first time...

 

The first time he'd ever been on Yugi's side of the board instead of his own. This time... He swallowed, turning back to Zorc. This time, they were on the same side. It was scary, but the same time he had this feeling that it would be alright. The dice rolled, and even without looking at the number Mokuba found himself grinning maliciously. In an instant, his figurine vanished from sight, the others jumping at the act while 'Yugi' smirked.

 

"SUPER CRITICAL!" A rush of energy hit him, wings taking him off into the air as the monsters looked around for their opponent. No one could see him... No one would know where he was, not until it was too late..!

 

"Mokuba!" Katsuya also looked around as the boy's light giggles sounded around him, eyes wide. Where was he? He turned to look at 'Yugi', blinking as the teen explained his current move. Of course that wasn't the only thing he heard, and soon his attention was drawn back to their opponent. There was a piercing scream as the first of the two monsters was cut in four, seemingly from no where. The giant eyeball seemed to comically divide almost like a watermelon before disappearing, 'Yugi' still smirking as the act was made.

 

"As a rogue, Mokuba has the ability to vanish completely from sight to sneak up on his opponents... He attacks with both speed and stealth!" At those words the monster vanished from sight, Mokuba appearing in his place with the two daggers still in hand. "And he defeats your monster!"

 

Katsuya grinned, cheering. "Alrigh'! Another critical hit!" He watched as Mokuba shook with excitement, still grinning from the energy rush.

 

"T-That was amazing!" He bounced on the spot, the one remaining monster scowling as it looked at the boy. "Amazing!" Oh boy, if this was anything like giving the kid sugar and caffeine...

 

The group watched as Bakura seemed to stumble a bit, before Katsuya snapped him out of it. After all... If they couldn't have a break, neither could he! "Hey, get movin' jack ass!" He ignored Anzu's comment of 'Will you watch your language around the kid!', and continued. "Mokuba killed 'm right? So go on," he added with a smirk. "What happens next?"

 

Another pause, before Bakura began typing things into the laptop. "Tch... Seeing his companion slain by the rogue so unexpectedly, the dragon hesitates and looses his next turn!" He didn't seem too pleased about that at all, now did he? About time! "The Beast Tamer, being closest to the dragon, takes the next turn," Bakura finished, still glaring at the group. Yugi nodded as he looked the dragon over, crossing his arms.

 

"This monster is pretty strong," he said to himself as Anzu nodded in agreement. "It'd be great to have him on our side!" Hey, that wasn't such a bad idea...

 

"Poki," the monster he already had on hand said. "I'll hold him down then!" Another nod.

 

"Ok! I'm capturing you!" Yugi's turn then!

 

Above, Bakura nodded before smirking. "The Beast Tamer's hands glow with magic," he began, his grin becoming more menacing. "But until a few moments ago, the 'Zorc Arm Dragon' was a part of Zorc himself! The potential to tame him is low, only 10%!" Ok, Katsuya thought as the dice clattered to the ground. He didn't know much math, but he was pretty sure that meant that Yugi needed a roll of 10 or LESS. Shit...

 

His annoyance increased as Bakura's smirk grew. Damn it... All these damn rules were pretty much just being created to mess with their heads, he knew it! The smirk suddenly faded however- Katsuya blinked, watching as the dice clattered around the arena. Now why was...

 

Ah! "One of the many ways of cheating with dice," 'Yugi' stated with a smirk, the dice hitting each other as though they were battle tops. "The double hit! The same form of your 'run of criticals' Bakura!" True to his words, the dice clattered to the ground and Yugi nodded as the 'score' became 'set'. The roll had been made; and there was no way it wasn't good. The large 'hands' appeared around the dragon, and he smiled.

 

"Another critical," Yugi shouted, the dragon squirming as it was enveloped completely by the pair of hands. "That means I can capture him! Come forth!" The hands vanished as the dragon, now far less menacing in appearance, floated over alongside 'Poki' to start a conversation with him. Alright! That was both monsters gone then! And to top that off... "Okay," Yugi said with a grin. "Now I've got a new monster!" And all because of some handy tricks with-

 

Wait... Katsuya scowled, looking back up at 'Yugi'. If 'Yugi' was actually cheating, that had to mean only one thing. 'Yugi' would never cheat, unless... "Tch... So that rat Bakura was cheating!" Ignoring Mokuba as the boy rolled his eyes with a ' _no duh_!', he continued. "Hey Yugi! Is it true that you can control the dice rolls?" Just to make sure now. Since... 'Yugi' also had insane _luck_ aside from just skill. The answer was a blunt 'Yes', the teen currently glaring at Bakura across the table. He then explained however, smiling.

 

"These ten-sided dice are shaped like five petaled flowers on both the top and bottom," he began, crossing his arms as he leaned back. "They're split into an even side and an odd side- but the important thing in a double hit technique is to spin the dice like a top, with the even side facing upwards!"

 

The group nodded, understanding. "Alright," Yugi said with wide eyes. "That way it can't stop on an odd number! And the chance of rolling a 0 is one in five!" Bringing a one in ten chance down by half! Haha!

 

The other Yugi nodded again, smirking. "Furthermore, when you throw the dice, you put a strong spin on the white one; the dice with the weaker spin will stop first, but if it stops on something other than 0, the stronger die can change the number by hitting it!" Which meant they could get the roll they wanted... Alright then...

 

Wait... Anzu frowned, crossing her arms. "But how do you get them to hit each other when you want them to..?" What she said. Instead of Yugi explaining, Mokuba decided to take over.

 

"You can control the path of the spinning by vibrating the surface," he said with a smirk, nodding his head. "Shaking the table with your knee works for example... And with that technique, you can change the number on the die as many times as you like!" Hey, should they be talking about cheating so loudly..? Sure Bakura was doing it too but... Still...

 

And hang on! If Mokuba knew that then... "Waaaait," Katsuya said as he turned to the boy. "So you're sayin' that las' night when we were playin' those dice games..." Thankfully, before the blond could make a response to Mokuba's fairly cheeky looking grin, the conversation 'above' continued.

 

Thankfully for Mokuba at least. At Bakura's glare, 'Yugi's smirk had only grown. "Too bad for you Bakura... If you can cheat, I can as well!"

 

"Yeah! Bakura," Katsuya shouted up, scowling, "Next time you cheat you outta turn into a miniature too!"

 

The albino huffed, taking the dice and letting them slide off his hands in a 'demonstration'. "Fine," he said with narrowed eyes. "From now on, this is how we roll the dice! Spinning is prohibited!" Yeah, he said that now that he was caught... Lousy rat.

 

Across the table, 'Yugi' nodded, obviously having no qualms with that. "Now then," Bakura continued. "On with the game! After taking care of Zorc's servants, the adventurers move onward... To the gates of Zorc Castle!" Well hey, that was some fast travelling- wasn't that castle Zorc's lair? Katsuya gulped as they approached the gate, Yugi leading them forward with a cheery 'Let's go guys!'. Beside him Mokuba bit his lip, sharing a glance with the older one for a brief moment. It was a silent exchange, but nonetheless put a bit of hope in their heart. They'd live through this.

 

No matter what, they'd live through this. They had Yugi and everyone else at their sides- they could not lose. "Right... This is it," he said as he looked at the boy. The final battle... It was now or never. "You ready?" The boy nodded, the others preparing their own weapons. Alright then... He steeled himself, nodding. If the others were ready, then so was he! Katsuya shook his arms slightly as the drawbridge to the castle was let down, turning to briefly look over at 'Yugi'. "Alright! No matter what's waitin', we've got Yugi on our side!"

 

As Mokuba gave a weak smile in response to that, the blond turned to him again. The kid was ready... But all the same, not completely. Katsuya pulled him over, ignoring the mutters of disgruntlement as he gave him an attempted noogie. Attempted being the key word given their 'hair' was currently solid pieces of carved metal.

 

"No worries alright?" He released the boy, smirking as Mokuba looked up at him. "He's a friend we can trust!"

 

"Hn..." Mokuba stared, before nodding with regained confidence. "Right! Let's go, Katsuya-nii!" With that, the two turned back to face the castle, the group holding their weapons at the ready as the bridge

before them locked in place. Bakura was talking of course- still doing his 'duty' as a DM, narrating their entry. He ignored the teen however, instead jumping back as the castle unfolded into a board.

 

"H- WHAT! This castle's a diorama too!"

 

"You've come to the last stage of your quest," Bakura said with a smirk as the group entered the main room of the castle hesitantly. "Somewhere in this castle waits Zorc! Can the group of heroes find him... And slay the demon?" They would if they had anything to say about it! Looking around the room with a scowl, Katsuya took a few steps forwards. Nothing around so far...

 

He narrowed his eyes, frown deepening before he turned to fact the throne up ahead. "HEY ZORC," he shouted, waving his sword. "WHERE'R YAH HIDIN?" Honda nodded, also joining in with a scowl.

 

"YEAH, COME OUT AND FIGHT US, YOU LIMP DICK MONSTER!" Zorc didn't seem to be appearing... As the shouts continued, Mokuba turned to look at a tower to the side, ignoring Anzu's cries of ' _WE ARE IN FRONT OF A CHILD_!'.

 

Examining it as he took a few steps over, he frowned. "Hey guys... That tower looks a little suspicious..." As the others walked in, Katsuya looked at the pedestal with a frown.

 

"Nhh... Some kinda weird markings on it..." Looked kinda like half 'o's, a pair of them. The pedestal itself was a little above where their legs ended in height. Hn...

 

Beside him, Honda shrugged. "Probably just a stupid carving," he muttered, the others following in to examine it. Yeah... Stupid carving. Heck, looking up they sure didn't see anything- He quickly regretted thinking this as they turned to hear 'Yugi' shouting at them.

 

"WAIT," he cried, leaning over the table. "Everyone, don't go in the tower!" Wh-Wh-What? Don't go in?

 

Mokuba gulped, as Katsuya gave a nervous smile. "N-Nhhh... But we're already..."

 

Awwww shit not good! There was a loud rumbling as Mokuba fled the room with a shout, the others looking up as their pieces refused to move. Mokuba didn't have to stay in one spot, he had wings that allowed him to at least gain a centimetre of ground in order to run. But for the figurines, who were glued to tiny platforms...

 

"T-THE CEILING!" A mess of spikes fell, a pedestal in the middle as it clattered down. ' _NO_!', he heard the other Yugi cry. ' _KATSUYA-NII!_ ', he heard Mokuba shout. "SHIT!" There was a crunching noise, and the blond winced as the ceiling hit their heads only to stop. Their legs quivered as Bakura smugly announced they'd fallen for a trap. Of course...

 

Of course they had, it was just a little obvious right now. "We're gonna be smushed," Honda shouted with a wince, the others in just as much pain. "Cracked in half..!" Stop talking Honda, please. Just stop reminding him. It was an eerie feeling, the metal spikes lodged in their heads- there obviously wasn't anything in there what with their bodies being metal now, but it was unnerving. A feeling of 'wrongness', having something stuck where it shouldn't have been.

 

"We can't move," Anzu cried as the spikes dug further into their heads. "Do something!"

 

Katsuya scowled as a few crack noises came around the room. "Accck... This thing ain't just spiked, it's fucking heavy too..!" He bit his lip, struggling for the air he didn't need as he attempted to keep from buckling under the pressure. Shit... Shit...

 

He didn't know where these cracks were coming from, but he had a feeling that he'd find out if they didn't hurry! Outside of the tower, they could hear the two 'real' people arguing. "BAKURA," 'Yugi' was shouting. "YOU PLAYER KILLING _SCUMBAG_!" Yeah, real powerful Yugi. He was quaking in his boots. Someone needed to remind him to teach Yugi to cuss after this was over.

 

Bakura merely chuckled, hands folded in front of him again. "I know the breaking point of my lead figurines," he said with an evil laugh, smirk growing. "They won't hold out much longer... Three turns Yugi! You have three rolls of the dice! And if you fail," he added menacingly, "All but one of your friends will die!"

 

As he said this Mokuba winced, Yugi's two monsters standing at his side as they watched helplessly. It looked as though the boy was feeling more than a little guilty about running out of there... But hey, at least he'd live if something went wrong right?

 

"This is a puzzle," the albino continued. "To save your friends, you must create the column to support the ceiling. However," he added, "To do that, you must roll a certain number on the dice!"

 

At this Mokuba turned to look over at 'Yugi' with wide eyes. "Yugi! Roll a critical! Hurry!"

 

The teen nodded, dropping the dice. "Yes," he shouted, "A critical!" That sounded good! Instead of the expected result however, the ceiling continued to shake, Mokuba looking back at the room with shock. Nothing was happening... Why wasn't anything happening!

 

"It... It didn't work!"

 

"Hnhnhnhnhn... Too bad! You did roll a critical number," Bakura said with a smirk, "But I said you needed a 'certain' number. Here's a hint," he added with a grin, clearly confident in the fact that they wouldn't get the result. "You need to roll doubles!" Doubles?

 

And they'd have to be specific too he bet... Mokuba scowled at those words, before looking back into the room. Thanks to the others, he could easily walk in and out. The carving that was between them had to be key, it had to! He ran over, looking at the carving with narrowed eyes. 'Yugi' likely couldn't see the carving, but he could! So maybe, if he found something...

 

"Nh- Mokuba," Katsuya said with a frown. "What'r yah doin' in here!" Yugi nodded, the other two located to far into the room to really see the boy.

 

"Mokuba-kun, you need to get out of here! If this falls..." The boy scowled, shaking his head. Honestly, just because he was a kid didn't mean he was made of glass! (Technically, he was made of metal right now but really...)

 

"Not now, I'm trying to think!" The piece of pillar attached to the roof had two inverted 'u' shapes on it, much like the bottom. Something needed to appear in the middle, if it was going to lift the spikes back up. His eyes narrowed in thought, Mokuba ignoring the words of the others as they attempted to convince him to leave.

 

"Which reminds me," Bakura continued from outside. "It's time for a monster encounter roll to see if Zorc appears..." He chuckled darkly, 'Yugi' visibly paling at the mention. From inside Mokuba and the others also tensed, the former turning to look outside the tower as Bakura continued speaking. "There's a 30% chance that he shows up," the albino stated, the groups eyes widening still. "JUDGMENT ROLL!" The dice clattered to the ground, and Bakura's grin grew. "28! The worst possible number for the adventurers," he continued, as the demonic figure of Zorc appeared just outside.

 

"A...Ahhh!" Mokuba paled, drawing back against the pillar as the demon appeared, cackling. Yugi's monsters also turned with shock, the demon flexing his single hand threateningly. "You feel straight into my trap, foolish children!" He continued laughing, Mokuba swallowing nervously as he drew further back against the pillar. "Prepare yourselves! I'll cut you to shreds while the trap holds your corpses in place!" Ohhhhh shit.

 

Katsuya scowled, looking down at Mokuba a moment. They might be there... But Mokuba could escape at least. In that case! He looked back up, before shouting at the demon. "You bastard! That's fucking low! _FIGHT FAIR_!" Or at least target him so that the others wouldn't take much force!

 

"Katsuya-nii, something tells me he's not listening..." Outside, they heard the dice roll again before crunching sounds continued through the figurines of the four tallest. "Gnn... Yugi," He shouted. "HURRY UP! They can't last much longer!" Doubles... Doubles, but what number? He looked at the pillar again, swallowing. What number!

 

Another dice roll for the DM arrived. "Zorc attacks," Bakura said as the dice clattered to the ground. "And since he has his targets cornered, his success rate is 95%!" The dice clattered to the ground, and Bakura snorted. "41," he called out, Mokuba hurriedly ducking as Zorc slashed at the group. "Not the best number, but it's a good start for a slow and painful death! Zorc strikes the immobile Warrior and Beast Tamer, while the Rogue is rendered unable to attack next turn!" The teens tensed as the slash passed through them, feeling their health drain from the hit. Regardless of the fact that 'nothing' had technically hit them, that felt like getting a good blow to the stomach with a guys fist..!

 

"U-Gnh..." As Mokuba looked over worriedly, Katsuya put up a small smile. Nothing... This was nothing! "S... It's fine kid, jus' a flesh wound yeh know?" Mokuba bit his lip, screwing his face into a scowl as he attempted to keep calm. He didn't want to die... But he didn't want the others to die either... Damn it!

 

"Gh... This really isn't the time to make jokes, Katsuya-nii!" As Katsuya merely laughed weakly in response, Mokuba steeled himself and poked his head out of the tower. That pillar... Something needed to join the two sides together, he knew what Bakura meant by doubles now! He had the answer! He knew what the carving meant! "YUGI," he shouted, the teen looking at him. Not much time, there was only one turn left! "0, 3, 6, 8, 9! They're the only ones you can roll! Hurry!"

 

The teen jumped, before nodding. "Alright then!" He dropped the dice, watching carefully. "Dice," he

called partially to himself. "Don't fail us now!" This was the last chance...

 

Mokuba watched as Katsuya began buckling over in weakness, the last attack combined with the stress of the ceiling beginning to take their toll. Dice clattered to the ground, and everyone bit their lip as they stopped. "33," the other Yugi shouted, looking over at the pillar expectantly. 33... Doubles, and 3s at that. And now...

 

Was it... Was it the right one..?

 

"I can't..." Katsuya shook, more cracking noises sounding through the air. "I can't keep it up... I can't do this any more!" Was it the right number or not? Bakura wasn't laughing, so obviously something had-

 

Mokuba's eyes widened, and a grin came over his face. The shaking had stopped, the roof raising a few centimetres as the pillar appeared. "It... YEAH!" The the numbers '33' appeared prominently on the carving, the others shocked into a relieved silence. It... It had worked...

 

It worked! "You found the solution, true," Bakura said with evident distaste, before dropping the dice. "But in that same instant, Zorc gets another attack! 12," he shouted, the dice clattering to the ground as he smirked. "Zorc strikes the adventurers!" As the demon cackled, slashing through the tower, 'Yugi' chuckled. Dust filled the air, and the still 'living' players looked at each other across the table.

 

"You forget," the teen said with a smirk, "That the player characters have much higher speed! Once the puzzle was solved," he continued, the dust from the attack clearing, "They succeeded in escaping! Which means they're alive and well, and behind your back!" As Zorc turned with shock, the 'adventurers' stood rather confidently behind him. Not a single one of them looked happy at all, at least not with Zorc. 'Yugi' grabbed the dice, still continuing. "And while Mokuba may be unable to strike this turn, the others still catch him by surprise! I roll!" 15!

 

Katsuya grinned as he gripped his sword, charging the demon. His turn, and this time no one was there to tell him otherwise! Didn't even know how to use a sword, but as he struck it through the middle he could do nothing but laugh in response. No wonder Mokuba had been so cheery during his own turn! This was incredible! "AWRIGHT! You ready Zorc," he shouted as the others stared the demon down. "Cause there's plenty more where that came from!"

 

Bakura seethed as he typed in the data, staring Yugi down with a seemingly impassive stare. "Tch... Very well... On this turn, the adventurers snuck up behind Zorc," he stated with a growl. No shit Bakura- they'd done so well he'd already made his move! The albino seemed to glare through his opponent, before continuing. "Therefore, they get extra attacks. Roll the dice!" A little mad? Just a little? Katsuya smirked. Good!

 

Above and behind them, 'Yugi' nodded, grabbing the dice as it came to Honda's turn. "Alright," he called, watching as the 'gunman' gripped his weapon with a scowl.

 

"Alright. It's pay back time," he shouted to the demon, aiming his gun carefully. "I'll put a hole through your brain Zorc!" And with Honda's aim, it wasn't likely to miss.

 

'Yugi' stared across the table; "Hear that Bakura? My hand channels their anger into these dice!" He tossed them to the ground, watching them clatter to as stop. "Dice roll! ... 09!" Honda smirked, shooting the demon Zorc within a split second. The familiar beam of light blasted out of the muzzle of the gun, Zorc barely dodging the blast aimed at his head.

 

"THUNDER GRENADE!” Idly, Katsuya wondered if this was bad or good. While Honda missed Zorc's head, there was now a very prominent hole in Zorc's left shoulder. And that wasn't all either.

 

"In addition," Yugi continued, "The magician and Beast Tamer also get a free attack!" The dice rolled again, and Anzu pointed her staff with a frown. "13!"

 

A flame appeared at the end of the staff, Anzu's gaze sharpening. Gripping the weapon as she held it forward, the flare increased in intensity before blasting off to meet with Zorc's torso. "APPRENTICE DEATH BLAZE!" The demon howled with rage, midsection in flames before the dice were rolled yet again.

 

Clattering to the ground the dice made their call, Yugi confidently pointing his two monsters forwards. "And now the final blow, critical! 08!"

 

The dragon and the 'sheep' charged forwards, blasts of fire and wind striking the demon down. The two blasts powered each other up considerably before surrounding the opponent, a large dust cloud resulting. "BEAST ATTACK!" Clouds of smoke filled the area of the table, Zorc completely hidden by the blow. Bakura reeled back, Mokuba smirking as he looked at the albino's face. They were winning... They could do this!

 

"Scared, Bakura?" he said with a grin, feeling considerably more confident than before now that they had the upper hand. "Didn't we tell you?"

 

Beside him Katsuya nodded, also grinning. "Our souls are channelled into 'Yugi's dice," the blond shouted, the others nodding behind him. "And when we get mad... The dice get even angrier!" They froze as Bakura's frown vanished, the teen chuckling as the smoke from the blast cleared. "Wait..." The monster as well was cackling darkly, the enormous form of Zorc continuing to tower before them. From what they could tell... He'd only been wounded minimally. "W-WHAT!" Now way... How!

 

"After all those attacks..." Mokuba stared, eyes wide with shock. "After all those attacks, he didn't take any damage!"

 

The DM continued to laugh, leering down at the five figures with a grin. "Fools," he shouted with a laugh, Zorc mirroring his actions. It was almost as though they were the same person, their voices practically overlapping as both spoke at the same time. "You're all still apprentices, level one adventurers! You don't have nearly enough experience to defeat ZORC!"

 

Honda balked, the others looking up at the monster as he prepared his next attack. "But that's..." He shook his head in disbelief, hands shaking. "After all those critical attacks..." How...

 

"Then..." Yugi frowned, clenching his fists as his monsters growled in response. "Then there wasn't any way for us to win from the start!" The laughing continued, Katsuya glaring up at Bakura's face and wishing to do nothing more than rip it from his skull.

 

"Are you calling me unfair?" Yes, they were... "Cowardly perhaps?" He continued, laughing with a mad grin. "As the Dark Master, I made everything in this Game World! I am the rules," he shouted, the players on the board shrinking back, "I am the monsters... I am the _GOD_!" He continued to laugh, grabbing a pair of dice from beneath the table. "Now, continue the battle," Bakura cried, the figurines below gulping audibly. "So that you can at least act out your deaths with grace!" There was only a few words for the situation at hand, Katsuya thought to himself. In fact, he could sum it up with only one.

 

_FUCK._

 


	19. Chapter 17 | The Red String of Fate

It was the end.

 

The air on the gameboard was tense and thick, not that anyone was really breathing. That was the thing about being a figurine. They were still 'breathing' somehow, but technically they didn't actually have to. It was weird. Horrifying in fact.

 

Not as horrific however, as the sight of Zorc cackling while Bakura dropped the dice to the ground. "You've had your turn," he shouted wickedly, the figurines standing frozen in fear as the sound of clattering dice sounded about the table. "Now Zorc gets his... He turns his full wrath on the adventurers!" Katsuya's breathing hitched, the dice clattering to the ground. Not critical, not critical...

 

Anything but that, if he got one solid hit in they were-

 

"SUPER CRITICAL! Zorc's Black Magic, DARK CATASTROPHE!" As Bakura cackled, the entire field when black. Katsuya found himself blown completely back with a wave of immense pain, darkness over taking him. No...

 

Yugi's monsters roared in agony as the others were thrown back just as mercilessly. NO...

 

He heard the dull clatter of metal against the board, the figurine forms of the others falling lifelessly to the ground...

 

_NO_!

 

"HAHAHAHAHAAA!" In the fading darkness, he could make out Bakura's blurred, grinning face. "Zorc's magical attack has the power to kill characters with more than 50 hit points in an instant!" No shit...

 

Katsuya slowly began to shut his eyes, feeling his 'body' grow heavy. This was the end... He'd failed Mokuba... Kaiba was probably going to wake up to an empty house now, if the woman ever woke up...

 

"All of the player characters are _DEAD_..." He didn't say? Fire fire _fire_ , his entire body was on fire... Even through blurred vision and numbed, non-existent nerves the feeling was just as blinding.

 

Burning... Burning... _Burning_... He was burning but he didn't have the strength to do anything, even scream...

 

He was tired, he thought as he finally gave up trying to move. So tired...

 

The blond closed his eyes, welcoming the inevitable. So tired... If he could just... Sleep...

 

...

 

* * *

 

...

 

... And suddenly, he wasn't sleeping any more. Katsuya's eyes flung open as a feeling of 'free falling' came over him, the 'landing' jolting his body. "Huh!" He coughed, somehow still standing as he gripped his knees for support before looking around. "W-Where... Where am I..." He slowly stood back up, taking in the vast and empty expanse before him. Darkness...

 

This place was so dark... There was nothing, absolutely nothing around him, or even- as he realized with a gulp- beneath him. As he looked down however he frowned, staring. His clothes... They weren't the ones he was wearing when he lost his soul, that was true but there was somehow something familiar about them. Leather shoes, breeches, a tunic... The blond quickly felt behind him, eyes widening. _A god damned sword and shield strapped to his_ -

 

This was what his figurine was wearing! At those thoughts he looked up again, eyes wide. The figurines... Abruptly, Katsuya found himself looking over his hands and arms, almost laughing from the shock. He wasn't a figurine! This was incredible, he wasn't-

 

The teen frowned, looking out into the darkness with another thought. "Shit..." Mokuba, Yugi, Honda, Anzu... The others weren't... He took a few steps forwards, frowning. "Where th' hell are they..?" It... This wasn't death right? He wasn't waiting for some creepy ghost to take him to Enma was he!? Katsuya's eyes widened as he grew pale, the thoughts hammering in his mind. Well if he was dead then.. If he was the only one here, that had to mean that the others lived right? R-Right! Holding his head in his hands, he groaned. Ohhhhh god... Dead... He was really done in wasn't he, this was- "Eh..?"

 

He blinked, frowning slightly as he pushed back those thoughts a moment. There was something on his hands. Something small, hair-thin in fact. He held up his hand, squinting in the darkness as he tried to make it out. It was almost like the only source of light was himself really, but couldn't have been it.

 

"What th' hell is this..?" The frown deepened as he found what looked to be a string around his thumb, giving a light tug at it only to watch as the other end vanished into the darkness. "Where..." He could hear the 'clink-clink-clink' sounds of metal connecting as he walked forwards. The darkness there was endless, pressuring, and he briefly wondered how much time had even passed. Then again he was dead wasn't he? So if anything time probably didn't exist any more. The clinking continued, before stopping. Katsuya froze, staring off into the distance for a moment. Something felt off. As though in a few seconds, something would happen...

 

The blond stared as from the same direction of the string, a partially formed 'ball' came tumbling forwards. It bounced a few times as though thrown, before rolling to a stop about a foot away from him. Katsuya blinked, staring at it before leaning down to pick it up.

 

"What is this," he muttered, tossing it a few times in one hand. "A puzzle..?"

 

"Y-You..!" He stopped, turning as a young childish voice pierced the darkness. A... A little girl. A small, probably no older than 5 little girl wearing a yukata stood there, her hands clutched tightly to the sides of her head in pain. The girl's face was twisted in a mix of emotions; confusion, fear, torment... Yet there was an oddly 'adult' tone to those eyes, he noted with a frown. A tone that made it seem as though this intense pain surrounding her had been experienced in a similar fashion before. As the girl buckled over in agony he found himself standing on the spot, unable to move. He felt weak all of a sudden... Like something was sapping away at his energy...

 

But that couldn't be right, he was dead... Wasn't he..? "Where is this place," he muttered, eyes narrowed. "Who... Who are you..?" His vision was fading. Did this mean he _wasn't_ dead? That he'd be waking up..? Or was he just in some kind of strange limbo, and the real death had yet to come? Maybe this 'girl' was another of Bakura's figurines, and he'd just randomly run into-

 

As he held a hand out with the puzzle, he froze. The string... The string, it was attached to...

 

He studied the girl's face, the child still looking at him in shock. This kid... She looked almost like... "Seto-chan..?"

 

As he said this, the teen tensed, a shudder passing through his body that very moment. The puzzle fell to the ground with a crash of metal, Katsuya suddenly finding it difficult to breath. He clutched his stomach, choking as a wave of intense pain ran through his body. What...

 

What was this? Eyes widened as he watched something drip from his body, before his vision was blocked by a wave of reds, golds, and yellows. "Ah... _AHHHH_!" Burning... Burning... _Fire_! He was on fire! The teen reached forwards, shouts lost as he felt himself drift away. Dead...

 

He was...

 

* * *

 

For the past few hours, she'd been feeling immeasurably cold.

 

The warmth that she held with her as she worked on her puzzle, the intensity of the emotions flowing through each piece, in one instant had been snatched out of her grasp. In one _instant_ , she was reminded by that 'voice', head pounding as wave after wave of thoughts ran through her head only to be pulled forever more from her grasp, _one instant_...

 

The ones closest from her seemed to have been torn from her life completely. Seto's eyes widened as she bit back a scream, body practically shrinking as pieces of her puzzle vanished into thin air. And as the pieces of memory she'd worked so hard to connect were ripped from her mind, she'd once again found herself restricted to the tiny, childish form of past memories. "AU _AAAAHHH_!" No!

 

NO! Her fingers dug into her head, before finally releasing to grab the puzzle before her and hurl it out of sight. Gone gone, everything! _GONE_! The pain intensified, as though rebounding with the puzzle missing. "RAAAAAAAHHH!" Her body tensed, face twisted with a mix of rage and pain. Everything, everything she knew...

 

How old was she again? When was she born again? Where was this place again? What was that sound she'd finally heard in the puzzle again? The girl's eyes grew wide as each thought vanished, expression becoming more fearful with each one. No... No she couldn't forget, she couldn't..!

 

Blindly, the girl ran off in the direction of the puzzle, stumbling and tripping over her own feet as she went. And then as she came to a stop, the pain only just slightly easing, she spotted something else. Eyes still wide, she looked up only to see a face that she somehow still remembered. "Y-You!" As she said this, another wave struck her, and she forced herself not to react. ' _Who are you,_ ' he said, and for a moment, she found herself staring at him in shock. "K-Katsu-" She jerked back, face shifting to that of a horror far surpassing the pain she felt when the teen before her abruptly burst into flames. His screams sounded through the air, before being drowned by the roaring flames and with a jolt she realized that the fires were not only there. She batted at the flames that had seemingly followed an invisible line to her hand, eyes wide. Out!

 

Out! Get- The flames halted, and a string of sorts became reduced to ashes from her pinky finger. Briefly the pain vanished, and she looked at the empty space where the blond had stood with wide eyes. He'd reached out for only a moment... Nothing more. He was dressed really... Really weird, when she thought about it. Leather armor, a shield and sword... Like a game...

 

_"Seto-chan?"_ he asked, almost whispering. For a moment, she'd been about to yell at him, tell him off about calling her by that name. That name that she couldn't recall... And then...

 

The girl stood, regaining her older form. Katsuya... That was his name. He was hired by... By Mokuba to...

 

To...

 

She grimaced, struggling to keep hold of herself yet again. Something was happening... The pieces vanishing, the memories disappearing, what happened just now...

 

"Un... Argh..." Seto gripped her head, stumbling with wide, open eyes. Disappearing... Vanishing... The darkness was closing in with each vanishing piece, her memory becoming nothing but empty holes. "What... What's happening..." Who... Who was doing this! A voice came from in the distance, and she looked forwards with a glare as what looked to be text appeared in mid-air.

 

_'My name is Bakura Ryou..._ '

 

The kanji and kana hovered directly above where Katsuya had stood, and through the veil of pain hitting her even now she was still able to stare at them with narrowed eyes. Bakura Ryou..? Seto winced again, clutching her head. This... Pain...

 

She snarled, lashing at the text that had apparently appeared from the smoke of the earlier flames. "Why should I care who you are! Get out of my head!"

 

There was no answer for a moment, and then the text flashed, changing. ' _My friends are in danger.'_ Just get out! She didn't care about these 'friends', let alone this 'person' even! Leave! ' _Your brother and friend are there... Please listen..._ '

 

"WHAT?" Her brother... Her brother was- Thoughts were torn once more, an image flashing before it vanished from her memory permanently. "Auuuugh!" She continued holding her head, watching as a 'screen' appeared. Five 'figurines' with portraits were visible on the screen, two of them appearing slightly familiar. One had black hair, and was probably just a child... The other...

 

Hang on... "Mokuba..." That's right... His name was Mokuba, he was... "And... And the..." The mutt? The one from before, his name was... Was...

 

Each portrait held beneath it the words 'HP 1'. Hp... Hp, what was that... A number so close to zero... If she could just remember these two, she knew they were important but-

 

"What do you expect me to do," she snarled, wincing in pain again as another piece vanished from the puzzle. "WHO ARE YOU!"

 

' _I helped them this time_ ,' the text began. ' _And I want to help them again. This time, I will fight_.' The text continued appearing, causing Seto's frown to deepen. ' _I cannot stop the next attack. Help._ '

 

She snorted. "And how! I'm stuck here..." The woman gritted her teeth, staring at the ground. Stuck, trapped... "I'd do anything for my brother, but so far all I can see is darkness!" Darkness and a puzzle ball full of holes in the memory where those two sat. Two? One...

 

They were fading away... Fading...

 

The 'screen' paused, as though contemplating this. ' _Please,_ ' the text seemed to have a begging tone to it as it went, hovering in place. ' _Please just say you will._ '

 

"Tell me what you'll do first!" She glared at the text, still gripping her head in pain. "SPIT IT OUT!" Another pause and a smoking, ghostly figure with no face or discernible body appeared from a small burst of flame. It stood in the exact position Katsuya had, but it was... Different. Misting, completely white. There were no clear features, form, anything to identify it save one thing and one thing only, and that was a left hand.

 

"... ..." It had no voice. It had nothing. Just that pale, just as white human hand with which it reached forward. Seto jerked back, the puzzle pieces she had yet to place scattering across the floor. They clattered against her fallen puzzle, and the 'ghost' paused in his approach before bending down to grab one.

 

"You... Don't touch those!" For a moment, the figure paused, before continuing as it ignored her protests. Slowly, it stood straight again, holding the piece in both hands before covering it with them. "Give that back," Seto hissed, the ghost continuing. "You have no right.. Gh!" She clutched her head

again, closing one eye as the ghost continued its work. Slowly it moved its hands, pulling the piece in 'two'- one piece remained identical to the first, unchanged as the ghost dropped it to the ground with a 'clink'. The second however... "Tch... You..." The woman stood, frozen as the figure continued in silence before handing her the second. It was completely different from the other, the only similarities being the shining golden colour it held. "What the hell is this..." She felt the 'new piece' over, frowning before text appeared behind the 'ghost' again. "What are you doing..?"

 

' _Please help,'_ the ghost appeared to beg, gesturing with that same left hand. ' _Just a little. Please help._ '

 

"Gh..." 'Just a little' it said? What did that even meant! The cold feeling in her body increased, the puzzle continuing to vanish as her head throbbed. Mokuba... Katsuya... What did they look like...

 

Hang on... Who were those two anyways, why were they so important..? Brother..? Did she have... That's right, she had...

 

"N..." Why couldn't she remember anything all of a sudden! Why were her thoughts disappearing! Mokuba... She knew he was dying... But that same dark voice in the back of her head kept telling her not to bother... "N..." And yet she knew, just knew that if that were to happen..! Clutching the piece in her hand, she continued to grip her head with her other hand. Seto stared deliberately at the ghost, gritting her teeth before nodding. "What ever it takes..." The pain increased again, and even with the puzzle piece in her hand she brought it to her head with a wince. "I'll do it..!" The voice in the back of her mind pleaded, told her that if she lost she would die...

 

But she was still here wasn't she! And there would be hell before she died... But if she didn't do anything, then her brother would die instead. Katsuya would...

 

Why did she care... "What ever it takes," she repeated, the ghost standing there a moment. Silence filled the room, and he nodded. The ghost seemed to mist away, before charging towards her. Before she could even say a word it passed through her body, the woman's eyes widening with shock. As her eyes slowly closed over half a second afterward, she felt the holes in her memory repair... Her head stopped throbbing, and the piece she held tightly in her hand clattered to the ground, her body following it. Ah, she thought as her vision finally blacked out. It felt...

 

Warmer now...

 

* * *

 

He could hear shouting.

 

Bakura's angered cries as the other Yugi rolled a pair of dice. _'But HOW,_ ' he was screaming, voice shaking with rage. ' _I never programmed that NPC!_ ' He felt someone picking him up, and slowly Katsuya opened his eyes. Light...

 

The ceiling... Even without a nose he could still smell the smoke on the air. He blinked a few times, before realization hit him. Hang on...

 

The ceiling, the board, the voices... They were alive! And oh... It hurt to be alive really...

 

He groaned, holding his head as he turned to the one who had helped him up. "Ung... Mokuba.. Are you... You alrigh..?" The 'fairy' nodded, body fairly singed, but otherwise ok. "Man... I thought we were dead..." Really really thought he was dead... Mokuba nodded again, looking over the others worriedly.

 

"I... I think we were... But..." The blond followed his gaze to Bakura, who was still shaking. "I don't know what happened, but I think that somehow, that attack didn't work the way it was supposed to..."

 

The teen nodded, looking towards the others. The attack didn't work? Huh... So... Someone pulled them back then? He swallowed, pulling himself to his feet. "You alright guys?" There were weak nods, a few mumbled 'yeah, I'm good's before 'Yugi's voice interrupted them. The teen was still facing Bakura from what they could get from the opponent's expression, and he sounded more than confident in whatever had turned the tides. "True Bakura, the others are still to weak to strike back..." Wait they were? He winced, clutching his 'stomach' in pain. Ok... Yeah, they were. Still feeling the strike from Zorc it looked like. "But it seems that some other force is on their side!" Wait what?

 

At those words, he and the others turned to look around the board for this 'other force' that 'Yugi' was talking about, finding nothing. Nothing on the ground... Where was it, the air? As Yugi continued, he found himself turning back to look at Zorc with narrowed eyes.

 

"I'll say it once more Bakura! It's not over yet!" The sound of dice clattering to the ground came, followed by a 'swish' sound. Zorc screeched in pain, Katsuya noting that for the same eye that had been gouged with an arrow, Bakura was closing his. Katsuya turned to follow the path the arrow had come, before widening his eyes. When he thought 'in the air'...

 

He hadn't been serious! "Who th' heck..?" 'Birdtail' as the race was called, was an aptly named group, given what the character sheet had said. Clawed feet, a long feathered tail, and almost avian eyes... But the special part about them was the ability to fly, with the angel like wings on their back. In the end however, their lack of decent weaponry for any of the classes he'd wanted had thrown the idea of a flying race off, so he'd gone with the ground-bound human. Looking at how this NPC character had just slammed Zorc in the face though... "Who is that..?"

 

The others followed his gaze, before Honda grinned. "I don't know man, but whoever she is, she just took out Zorc's left eye like it was nothing!" Yes. Yes she did, but _who was she_..? He couldn't see her face, eyesight from a figurine's perspective was just a little faulty really... "I like her!"

 

Beside him Anzu nodded in agreement, while Mokuba stared up at the sixth player character with narrowed eyes. Ignoring the stare the woman watched as whoever had shot the arrow came towards them from the sky, giggling at what their new ally had done. "I bet that one hurt..!"

 

At those words the archer landed, apparently wearing a simple leather tunic with a quiver. Her hair was a little longer than Anzu's, and trailed back down between her wings from what they could tell. The more interesting part however, now that she was close enough to see...

 

"Huh..." Yugi blinked as the archer turned to glance at him, before turning back to face Zorc in silence. "Those eyes... The almost remind me of Kaiba.-kun.." An angel Kaiba. Hahaha. If it wasn't such an impossible wish, he'd be doing what Honda was doing.

 

This being, of course, laughing, wincing, and laughing again as the archer seemingly ignored him. "Oh man... If Kaiba wasn't in a coma..." Honda quickly stopped at Mokuba's incredibly intense glare, coughing nervously as the others looked at Bakura with smirks. "Er... Anyways..."

 

Bakura in question was grimacing, holding his left eye shut as he gritted his teeth. "Yugi..." As the albino said this, Katsuya found himself looking at the otherwise silent archer with a raised eyebrow before continuing to listen to the conversation above. This 'Kaiba' look-alike was actually creeping

him out a little. It was as if she was completely into the NPC role. "You've really pissed me off now..."

 

At that moment, the teen looked down at his laptop before tensing with shock. What the hell...

 

Now what could be on that screen that scared him so much... "If I do this," Bakura muttered to himself with a grin, "And place the computer where my left hand can't reach, you're powerless!" What the heck was he muttering about? Did...

 

Did he lose it just now? As Bakura continued into quiet, if not somewhat insane laughter, the others approached the 'Archer' with hesitancy. What with her having saved all their asses without a word, it seemed like the right thing to do."So," Anzu began, the other woman turning with her same blank stare. "What's your name..?"

 

She gave no answer, merely blinking as she looked Anzu over. It was as though she _couldn't_ answer really- like all she was there for was literally just to save them and help them out for the home stretch. Honda raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms with a frown. "Hey, the lady asked you a question... Er... Lady..." Shrugging off his lame request, he tapped the archer's shoulder, before drawing back from the equally blank and uncaring stare he received for his efforts. "Er... On second thought... I'll leave you alone..."

 

"Kaseri- Um," Mokuba said, the others turning as he coughed. "Er... I mean..." He flushed, before laughing nervously. "Kaze, right? Kaze works, right? Because she can fly, and the arrows move like wind! So we can call her 'Kaze for now! Ahaha.." He gave Katsuya a look, as if to say 'PLEASE HELP'.

 

Catching on fairly quickly (Given that it looked like the boy would stab his toe if he didn't hurry), he nodded. "Yea! 'S not like she's sayin' anything! Might as well pick a name ourselves, hahaha..." The others gave him a fairly disbelieving look, and he coughed. Staring a few moments, they eventually shrugged before turning upwards as Bakura continued speaking. Quietly, Katsuya turned to Mokuba with a confused glance. "H-Hey kid... That isn't... ...Were you about to say..."

 

He shrugged, eyes wide as 'Kaze' merely stood motionless in wait for her 'turn'. "I don't know... I mean... It looks like her but... That's impossible right..? She... She's at home, I mean..." The boy was answered with silence, Katsuya staring at the woman oddly before being slapped. "Hey," Mokuba hissed angrily. "Stop ogling my sister!" He wasn't! They were figurines, what was he even going to stare at!?

 

"What, you didn't think of that when I was hired for security!" Ok, not his best defence, lets try... "And it's not really her, it just looks like her!" If it was actually Kaiba, he'd eat Zorc. And... Right now he didn't want to go anywhere near Zorc.

 

The boy scowled, whispering back. "I have cameras to tell me if you're doing anything like that, so I know you're not, moron!" Crossing his arms, he focused on Katsuya's other attempted defence. "And just because it's not her, doesn't mean! You said it yourself, she _looks_ like her." Katsuya appeared to ignore this, still staring at the figurine before gaining another smack. "Stop ogling her, Katsuya-nii!"

 

Before he could respond to that, the boys turned, a pair of dice clattering to the ground again. A wave of energy passed over them, and the blond blinked. "H-Huh, what..?" He looked himself over, eyes wide as the burn marks and injuries began to repair themselves.

 

From behind Anzu giggled. "I won out with initiative," she stated, twirling her staff. "I might have more experience attacking, but I can also heal!" The injuries continued to vanish, Mokuba flexing his 'fingers' for a few moments as Katsuya stretched.

 

"Hah! I feel great!" The others cheered, Anzu beaming with pride as she glanced at 'Kaze'. Katsuya also looked over, but the archer remained otherwise motionless. It was all a little creepy actually, and it felt as though the figurine wasn't even there.

 

Above, Bakura seethed for a few moments before smirking. "Alright then..." He said with a laugh, gripping the dice in his hands. "You're completely healed! But compared to Zorc, you're still nothing more than micro-organisms. And having a level 5 archer at your side will do nothing for it!" He continued to laugh, the figurines bracing themselves as Zorc moved to prepare a strike. "Even at your maximum hitpoints you'll be blown to dust on Zorc's next turn! Get ready," he shouted, raising his right hand in preparation to drop the dice. "Because Zorc hits on an 80 or less... And if he hits, then all of you will take damage! HERE I-"

 

Katsuya frowned as the albino's left hand moved on it's own accord, dropping a pair of dice to the ground. Bakura's own face contorted with shock and rage as they toppled, while 'Yugi' merely grinned. "99," the teen called out, Katsuya swearing he heard someone else speaking. Was there someone else there..? Anyone? "A fumble!"

 

' _I won't let you control me anymore!'_ Who was saying that? It sounded so familiar, almost as if it was...

 

As the voice sounded, Kaze appeared to be the only other one aware of it, eyes turning towards the left hand but still holding the blank gaze.

 

_'I won't let you control me!_ ' Who was that? That voice that he was hearing, it sounded almost identical to-

 

The blond watched as Zorc prepared his blast only to have it explode in his face, grinning. About time the enemy got a bad roll! "ALRIGH'! He fumbled!"

 

Yugi also grinned, watching as Zorc hissed in rage. "He blew himself up! We have a chance after all!"

 

"AAAAAUGGH!" Bakura's shout took their attention, a majority of the group turning with wide eyes as the DM gripped his left wrist. "This..." The hand shook, as though struggling, and Bakura continued to stare at it with his one open eye. As though fighting against himself... What was he doing, what- "THIS BLASTED LEFT HAND!" Their eyes widened, and there was a disgusting 'squelch' as the teen brought his hand down on the sharpest thing in sight. Mokuba looked as though he'd be sick as drops of blood landed mere centimetres from their places, accompanied by a few flecks of skin and muscle tissue that had been knocked off by the force.

 

Bakura had... _Impaled_ his own left hand on the sharp point of one of the castle towers, fingers twitching as the teen pushed firmly on it. The castle top was bathed in red, fragments of bone jutting from the hand as the tendons attached pulled back in on themselves. And through all of that, the albino wasn't showing the teeniest bit of pain.

 

"AHAHAHAHAHAAA!" Katsuya stared with wide and disgusted eyes as the teen cackled, hand giving a pathetic twitch. He turned as the archer as well made a sound, wincing as she stumbled on her feet. What the hell... Why was she reacting to this? "HOW DO YOU LIKE THAT, BAKURA RYOU!" Bakura? But _this_ was Bakura, wasn't it! What the hell was going on, was he possessed or something! "How does the durable poly-resin feel? AHAHAHAHAHAA!"

 

Anzu gulped, looking at Bakura's twisted expression with mixed fear and confusion. "L-Look at Bakura's expression... What's going on with him?" He as well gulped, before looking at 'Kaze'. For a brief moment he was almost sorry about the fumble but...

 

"That... That ain't Bakura," he shouted, the hand finally giving one last twitch as 'Kaze' collapsed to her knees. "This can't be him!" They'd been bad mouthing him the entire time, but it never occurred to them that maybe, just maybe, when Bakura had mentioned those comas the day before... That he was genuinely afraid. That there really was something _else_ doing this. And if Bakura was only just now fighting back...

 

"...Yeah," Honda shouted, the others nodding in agreement. "This guy can't possibly be him!" Bakura was the good guy. He wasn't sure what the hell happened, but the fact was...

 

_'Don't come in!'_ He'd tried to warn them. Katsuya winced at the memory, biting his lip. He'd tried _everything_. Separating himself from everyone, even skipping school that day for their sake he bet...

 

And instead they'd dropped their beliefs in him like a hot potato, focusing on 'Bakura the Bad' instead of 'Bakura the Probably Possessed'. And hell, with everything else that went on around here...

 

Was it that surprising? "Heheheheheheee..." Bakura looked up from his hand with a wicked grin, typing a few things into the laptop as he spoke. "Next is the Beast Tamer... Your turn, Yugi!" As 'Yugi' took the dice, Katsuya found himself looking from 'Kaze' to the teen with an odd look. The figurine was shaking, just slightly. As though her life literally was tied to that one hand. ...That hand...

 

Zorc was missing a hand right? Finally, he turned to Yugi with a determined look. "Yugi..." The 'tamer' turned to him, blinking. "You know what t' do, right?"

 

He nodded, smiling. "Yeah!" As he said this, the other Yugi turned to stare down Bakura with a severe glare. They all knew what needed to be done now!

 

"Game Master," he shouted, obviously refusing to refer to him as Bakura now that they'd decided he simply wasn't, "The Beast Tamer will try his power on Zorc, the Lord of Darkness!"

 

'Bakura' jumped, single eye widening with shock. "What? Do you honestly think that the 'Taming' power will work on Zorc?" As the albino said this, the figurines merely nodded. It wouldn't work completely, Katsuya thought to himself. But if Bakura was trapped in there somewhere, they'd get him out! "Hehehehe... A useless effort," Bakura said with a smirk. "Zorc wouldn't become your ally even if it meant the end of the world!"

 

Across from him, the other Yugi merely huffed. "I'm trying it anyways," he said with a shout, dropping the dice. "Here's my roll!" As they clattered to the ground, Yugi braced himself, sending his 'hands' over towards Zorc.

 

"Don' forget," Katsuya muttered as Yugi did this. "Aim f'r the hand!"

 

"Got it!" It was '05', a critical hit. Zorc cackled as the hands moved around to his wrist, the demon looming over them with a menacing grin.

 

"Fools," he shouted, ignoring the looks of determination that his victims held. As the hands moved to 'tug' at it, he continued to cackle. "You'll have to raise your level to a MILLION before you can think of making ME an ally! AHA _HAHAAA!_ You- ...WHAT!?"

 

They stared, Anzu pointing as a white mist began to escape from Zorc's arm. At the same time, 'Kaze' appeared to regain her strength, coughing slightly as she looked forwards in genuine curiosity. "L-Look," Anzu shouted, the mist slowly taking the form of a white-haired figure in white. This was... "Zorc's arm!"

 

Yugi smiled as the figure reached forwards, ignoring the screams of rage that Zorc was giving. "Here," he cried, the large 'taming hands' reaching towards the figure. "Take my hand!" The figure did just that, appearing exhausted as he did so before being pulled down. As the figure collapsed to the ground before them, Mokuba nervously floated over to the robed figure, tapping his shoulder.

 

"You..." The figure slowly stood, and he frowned slightly. "You're Bakura... Aren't you..?" He couldn't be sure, but it certainly looked like him. The wizard smiled, brushing some dust from his robes as the archer joined his side.

 

"Thank you, everyone," he said quietly. "For saving me..." He cleared his 'throat', before continuing. "I am the White Wizard Bakura," he began, before gesturing to 'Kaze', "And this is the Archer, 'Kai'." At this 'Kai' bowed her head slightly, eagle-like eyes appearing to fill with life now. Kai... That was Seto's gaming name. But she'd never even gone near 'Monster World', right? (And if she had, he had a feeling that the player would not be female. Or this low in level.) "We're NPCs, non-player characters created by Ryou Bakura," the wizard continued, gripping his staff. "Please, allow us to join your party!"

 

"Of course," Katsuya shouted, the others nodding in agreement. Hey, he'd thought they already had really... "Why th' heck would we say no?"

 

Honda grinned as the two new party members joined their side, pumping his fists. "YEAH! Let's show Zorc a new level of pain!"

 

'Bakura' hissed, before grudgingly continuing to narrate. "It's still your turn," he bit out, Mokuba's figurine blowing a raspberry at him. "The magic gunman goes next!"

 

Across from him 'Yugi' nodded. "The gunman attacks," he shouted, rolling the dice. "He shoots Zorc... 15!"

 

A blast from Honda's gun shot through Zorc's midsection, the others gaping. "Holy shit," Katsuya shouted, grinning as a large hole appeared where the bullet had gone through. "That never happened before!"

 

Beside him Bakura laughed, smiling softly. "As an NPC," he began, the others watching as 'Kai' began to shoot a volley of arrows behind Honda's shot outside of 'Yugi's control. "Kai and I obey the will of the other game master, Bakura Ryou, and act beyond your turn." As 'Kai's turn also ended a fair number of arrows stuck to the side of Zorc's face, and his smile grew. He adjusted the grip of his staff, which glowed slightly before returning to normal. "I thought it might help, if I lowered Zorc's defenses slightly with my white magic..."

 

The groups grins grew as Zorc's hitpoints plummeted, the demon snarling in pain. "Ahahahaaa! YES," Katsuya shouted, Mokuba grinning as well. White Wizards... 'Diabolists'! With Bakura on their side things were looking up a lot, and it seemed they just might make it through! Bakura continued to smile softly, shaking his head.

 

"This is the least I can do," he said, Kai standing beside the group silently again. "You saved me from the darkness of Zorc's heart, and my partner from a similar fate... This time, I will fight together with you!" A similar fate? For a brief moment, Mokuba and Katsuya both had to frown. If 'Kai' had been created by Bakura, he'd say the same right? At the same time, Bakura had never met Kaiba, whom the figurine resembled. So... What did he mean by a 'similar' fate?

 

At these words the 'fake' Bakura growled, gritting his teeth. The expression of anger was more than evident on his face, and Katsuya found himself grimly appreciating that fact. Served him right, sealing them all in these lead figurines... The blond found himself quickly drawing back however, as the expression changed to a grin. Zorc gave a loud roar of some sort, body twisting and mutating as they all drew back. "Oh no," Bakura shouted, holding his staff out protectively. "No, that's-"

 

Whatever it was, it wasn't good! As the beast writhed it gave a final loud roar before releasing a blast of energy, the group caught completely off guard. " _NO_ ," the other Yugi shouted, the board vanishing into clouds of smoke as the 'other' Bakura cackled. The growls could still be heard through the fog, and the figurines below squinted as they attempted to see through to their opponent. And what they saw...

 

Katsuya swallowed, eyes growing wide as the mutated creature slowly revealed itself before them. "This is Zorc's final form," Bakura shouted loudly, the wave of energy pressing on the group. "His attack and defence both level up, and now, it's HIS turn! DICE ROLL!" Wait, that attack wasn't even-

 

It shouldn't have been his turn as it was and-

 

The dice clattered to the ground, Bakura still cackling. " _SUPERCRITICAL_!" A panel of sorts opened on the 'final' form's chest, a large blast of energy shooting forwards. Shit... Shit..! He couldn't move...

 

Neither could the others...

 

The pressure pushing down on them whatever it was, held them firmly in place. He closed his eyes, biting his lip as he waited for the attack. Shit...

 

Shit...

 

...

 

Nothing was happening. He watched numbly as both Kai and Bakura jumped forwards, the wizard acting first as he stood beside the blond. "WHITE MAGIC," the albino shouted, "Shining Shield level 13!" Even as the shield appeared, the heat from the blast felt worse than anything before. Even as Kai stood directly in front of them, back turned to Zorc as she held her head down in pain, he idly wondered if this was how oven-made pizzas felt.

 

"WHITE WIZARD," the other Bakura cackled, the energy still bearing down. "How long can your magic stand against Zorc's flames!" The wizard winced, and as the others told him to hang in there, that he was doing alright, Katsuya found himself looking at Kai's smiling face.

 

"Smile..." He swallowed, voice low and barely audible as he stared at the archer in shock. White feathers were misting away into nothing but solid, unmoving lead, unlike the seemingly 'living' forms they held. And as drops of what the blast was hot enough to melt dripped down to the ground, she was still smiling. "Why are you..."

 

And to his surprise, he heard her voice again. "The last... Piece..." What? She continued to mist away, still smiling. Her arms and legs were becoming rigid, glued to her side as most of the figurines had been created. And even through that... "The last piece... _For her sake_..." What the hell was she saying? Last piece?

 

Last piece for what! With those words, she vanished into nothing but a solid lead figure, clattering to the ground lifelessly. And yet still he could hear...

 

' _Don't die, both of you_.'

 

The dust cleared, Bakura collapsing to the ground as Honda looked over at the others. "The attack is over," he said, breathing heavily. "Is everyone ok..?" Even the ground was about destroyed by the attack, black ash marks mucking up the floor before them. In the midst of it 'Kai's figurine lay on it's side, staring blankly upwards and completely devoid of life.

 

Katsuya grimaced as he took in the scene, numbly pulling himself to his feet. "Kai... She didn't..."

 

Beside him, Mokuba nodded sadly. "We've all taken a lot of damage..." The others turned to Bakura, Anzu running over to his size in worry.

 

"Oh Bakura... Just wait, I'll use my healing magic next turn and-"

 

The wizard shook his head, weakly pulling himself up. "No... I... I'm fine," he said, wheezing. "Anzu... If you have enough magic to heal, please, use it to attack Zorc!" As the others looked at him in shock, Bakura's expression hardened. "I don't have enough power to protect everyone again... And the only reason I could is because Kai took the brunt of the attack. If we don't finish it on this turn," he continued, bracing himself with his staff, "We'll all be destroyed!"

 

They fell into silence, before Mokuba and Katsuya both shared a glance and nodded. "We got ya Bakura," the blond said as he took up a stance with his sword. "If we gotta die, we'll do it together!"

 

"Yeah," Honda added, spinning his gun before taking aim. "Time to hack and slash!" And shoot! Looking forwards, he smirked. "And it looks like that attack has one good point too!"

 

Yugi nodded, as his other self pointed towards a rather prominent eye that appeared beneath the 'panel' from the attack. "Look," the 'tamer' shouted. "His weak point!"

 

The other Yugi grabbed the dice, nodding. "The muzzle of Zorc's death weapon... Hit the eye!" As he said this however, Mokuba balked.

 

"Ah! The hole," he cried, the panel slowly closing in an aperture. "It's closing up!"

 

"No good," Anzu cried, shaking her head. "It's too late! It'll seal up before we can strike back!"

 

Katsuya winced at that realization, growling as 'Bakura' gained a smug expression at the fact. Damn bastard, of course the one weak point would be covering itself. 'Bakura's grin quickly vanished however, as one of Yugi's monsters charged forwards to jam itself into the hole. "Poki!" They shouted out to the small 'sheep', the monster merely bracing itself in the round aperture hole. "This is your chance," he shouted at them, the 'poki' sounds echoing around the board. "Blow me away, along with him... Do it now, quickly!"

 

The blond stared, before shaking his head. "Thanks... Poki..." He resumed his stance, before frowning. "But we ain't sacrificing a friend we've fought alongside!" Even if that friend was technically a falsely created being... But hey, for all he knew, that 'falsely created being' was another offshoot of Bakura's soul! (Though what did that make Kai...) "An evil soul ain't worth an ounce of the life of a friend!"

 

He stepped back, allowing Yugi to come forwards and gain the 'initiative' to move first. Yugi's move... He could fix this! "Let's go," 'Yugi' shouted, dropping the dice. "The beast tamer attacks! 02!"

 

Below Yugi nodded, hands stretched out in determination. Poki might not be able to get out alone, but perhaps with Yugi's help... "TRAINING HAND! _JET STREAM PUNCH_!" A large fist appeared, blasting clear through the weak point and catching Poki in its safe grip. While flaps of skin were all that was left of Zorc's weak spot, Poki was completely unharmed. The others grinned, watching as Zorc wretched in pain.

 

Above the other Bakura clutched his stomach as well, growling. "Alright!" Katsuya grinned, watching as Zorc slowly pulled himself back up. He hit the weak point dead on... They had a chance! The dice rolled again, Mokuba twirling his daggers. Now that it was down to the group, all of them standing in a 'line' of sorts, speed was determining the turn-set. "Now for the rogue! Dice roll!" They clattered to the ground, the 'fairy' vanishing from sight to charge forwards and slice the monster's bottom legs clean off from the body. "04!"

 

Giggling echoed through the air again, before the boy reappeared on the other side of the monster. " _Shadow Tag Strike_!" As Mokuba smirked Zorc still continued to roar in pain, fumbling around with his single hand. This is the final blow, Katsuya thought to himself as 'Yugi' grabbed the dice again. This was it... "The warrior's turn!" The dice clattered to the ground, and he narrowed his eyes as he charged forwards. "01!" Last hit! They couldn't waste this! _Explosive Energetic Slash_!

 

Zorc screeched as his entire torso was cut through, bottom half separated from the top cleanly by the blade. Katsuya turned, watching as the demon collapsed to the ground to clear a path for the others to grin at them. "We did it," Honda cried, the 'gunman' watching as Katsuya and Mokuba both gave each other a high-five. "We beat Zorc!" It was over! He and Mokuba ran between the two halves, joining the others with equally wide grins. They'd won! They...

 

Wait...

 

Just as they began celebrating with the others Katsuya found himself turning back to look at Zorc's corpse. Something didn't feel right about this. He reeled back with a shout as Zorc continued to hiss in pain, slowly pushing himself up as clouds of shadow seeped from his mouth. "No way..." The demon struggled to stand on one hand, Katsuya's eyes being drawn to 'Bakura' with horror. "Zorc isn't dead yet!" That expression...

 

That twisted expression on 'Bakura's face, that contorted grin... Identical to the monster before them... "Hahahahahahaaa... The fact that you didn't finish Zorc on this turn will be your down fall," the teen said with a low, grim chuckle. His breathing was weak, haggard, and still he continued, as though on his death bed. "On the next turn, Zorc and the adventurers must roll for initiative again! YUGI," he shouted, finding the strength to pull himself up in the chair. "We roll at the same time! The winner goes first!"

 

As Katsuya turned to look over at 'Yugi', he repressed a nervous swallow. 'I'll take you on', he was saying. 'This roll means life or death', he was saying... The other Yugi clenched the dice tightly, while 'Bakura' continued. Last chance...

 

All or nothing with this one move. If it was possible, that frighteningly inhuman grin had grown. "This roll," he began with a crazed laugh, "Will also determine the success of the attack! Not only will it determine who goes first, it will determine who kills who!" As the group of figurines and 'Yugi' both sent ice cold glares to the teen, he continued. "The instant my roll beats yours, Zorc will self destruct," he shouted with a laugh. "By destroying all of you, I will be victorious... And if we roll the same number," he said darkly, "We both die! I blow up the same moment you attack me! Either way, I win! AHAHAHAHA!"

 

He frowned at those words. Alright, so the roll had to beat his but... 'Other' Bakura had said 'I'. He didn't say 'Zorc', he said 'I'... "What th' fuck..." They had to win this. Katsuya, along with all the others, turned to look up at 'Yugi' with determined frowns. Bakura of course was going on about how he'd win no matter what, but they had faith. They had faith in this roll! It would win!

 

"Lets go," 'Bakura' shouted, grinning madly. Death just wasn't even phasing this guy... Right to the end, he was going through with his plans. "THE ROLL OF LIFE OR DEATH!" The dice flew into the air, Katsuya and the others watching as they slowly sailed downwards. Please...

 

They needed this number...

 

Please... "00," he shouted, looking across at Bakura. Katsuya's eyes widened with relief as the others grinned. Supercritical! The lowest possible roll! They were in the clear!

 

"How do you like them apples," he shouted, turning towards 'Bakura'. "Super Critical!" His face fell however as the albino continued to grin, simply watching as his own dice clattered to the ground. "No..." The dice clattered to the ground, and 'Bakura' began cackling madly. No way... No fucking way, the chances of getting a tie of those numbers were just... "Super..."

 

The albino's grin widened even more, his closed eye giving the appearance of a cruel wink. "AHAHAHAHAHAAAA! What a cruel strike for you," he laughed, pointing across to Yugi. "At the moment you were sure of victory, to fall into the jaws of defeat!" As the other Yugi levelled a silent and angered gaze at the teen, his laughter increased. "This was GREAT! This was the best game I've ever played! Two sets of double zeroes... The most dramatic ending, everyone dies!" He grinned, moving to type something into the laptop. "Just as you leap forwards," he narrated, the figurines below glaring daggers larger than themselves, "Zorc explodes, taking you wit-" He froze, eyes wide as the dice cracked. "It's YOU!"

 

Katsuya turned, eyes wide as the others watched the dice, confused. "What's going on," Anzu was saying. "How are the dice doing that?"

 

"They're cracking," Yugi was saying, eyes wide. "They're just... Crumbling!" What did they mean 'just crumbling', couldn't they see?

 

He was right there..! _'I don't want to lose any more friends!_ ' Ryou Bakura hovered above the dice, staring his other self down. _'Even if it means my soul should shatter!'_ No...

 

Katsuya's eyes grew even wider with realization as the dice continued to shatter, mouth hanging open. No... Bakura was going to...

 

If the dice were tied to him the way he thought, then that meant.. The spirit turned to the other Yugi, whose eyes widened as the dice continued to break. "Yugi... Everyone..." His voice grew loud, clearly heard across the table. The gasps of the others around him told the blond that they could see him as well now in these final moments. Maybe it was because he was talking to them all, but then how was it that earlier... "Thank you for believing in me..."

 

"BAKURA!" An explosion resounded about the room, the dice bursting into pieces. The 'other' Bakura reeled back in shock, the others on the table rendered silent for the moment. 'Yugi's eyes narrowed as he stared the albino down, clutching the edge of the table. Finally, he spoke."So you rolled a super critical," 'Yugi' asked with a glare. "I don't see one! No dice, no roll," he added. "WE ATTACK! Prepare yourself Zorc, for Anzu's magic!"

 

The magician nodded, wand at the ready as she aimed at the enormous, hideous beast. "Lets do it," she shouted, a blast of energy forming at the end of the staff for a moment. "GO!" The blast launched off the weapon, encompassing Zorc's broken body completely. " _FINAL BIG BANG_!" The entire area in front of them was hidden in the light of the explosion, which managed to keep below the top of the table. Zorc's figurine vanished from sight completely, his silhouette slowly fading away into dust. Before they could contemplate this however, the group's attention was pulled to another source.

 

"HRAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!" Katsuya jumped as 'Bakura' gave a scream, eyes wide as the outline of a ring of sorts appeared through the 'DM's shirt. While the light from the blast enveloped the demon's almost destroyed body, Bakura toppled over with an expression of fatal pain. Zorc was dead. The 'fake' Bakura was dead... But what about..!

 

Sh-Shit! "BAKURA!" The other Yugi rushed over, lightly checking for a pulse on the albino. The figurines stared upwards, eyes wide. "Yugi, how's he-"

 

The teen shook his head, looking down at the still miniature forms of his friends. "It's no good... He's dead..." No... Bakura...

 

He'd sacrificed his soul... To save all of them. After they'd given up on him for the first half of the game... He'd done that... "No," the White Wizard behind them said quietly, the others turning to look at him in shock. That's right... This 'Bakura' was created by the real one, wasn't he? But then, what was 'Kai'..? Nonetheless, he could do something, right? "Ryou Bakura's soul is still alive," he said sadly, gesturing to himself. "Inside of me..." So then... "The master created me into this world, and through his adventures made me grow," the wizard continued with a smile. "Over time, I became a level 13 white wizard... And now, I can pay my master back." The group stood, rendered silent by the words. After a few seconds, Honda muttered a 'whoah', but otherwise listened as the NPC continued. "Since I'm level 13, my healing magic should be strong enough to transfer my soul back to the master... But I'm a lead figurine in a game world," he cried, turning to the still 'real' Yugi. "I can't move without the will of a game master, or a player... So Yugi," he continued, eyes wide and pleading. "Throw the dice for me! Make the roll to do my magic!"

 

Picking up the dice, 'Yugi' nodded, eyes soft as he smiled. "I will! And don't worry," he added, the others looking up at him as well. "I'll be sure to roll a critical!"

 

The white wizard turned to the others, smiling sadly. "The next time we meet in this world," Ahahaha, if they played this game ever again... "I too will be a level one apprentice in my class, without any experience.." Well... That didn't sound too bad. Honda balked however, eyes wide.

 

"N-No xp? But, Bakura!" Experience wasn't really the problem here! Sheesh!

 

"Farewell, everyone..." With that, the dice were thrown, double zeroes landing on the board as expected. "Healing Magic," the wizard cried, body glowing with light as he began to 'vanish' in the same way 'Kai' did earlier. "Luonazun!" Holding the staff up high, the same familiar 'change' happening to his body from the bottom up. Legs grew rigid, arms here held taught at the sides... And finally the figurine clattered to the ground, silent. It was a strange feeling. One moment, he and the others were holding White Wizard Bakura's motionless and stiff body, the blond shouting as his expression froze in a gentle smile...

 

And the next, he was being woken up by Mokuba. "Katsuya-nii!" He groaned, rubbing his head. Ach... It hurt like hell damn it... "Katsuya-nii, wake up! We're back to normal!"

 

He blinked, sitting up as he looked at Mokuba. "We're..." The look of shock was quickly replaced by cheer, and he pulled the kid close into a hug. As the boy in question squawked in response to this, he grinned, completely lost in the moment. "Oh man! We're done! We did it! Yer' still alright! We WON! YES!"

 

"Ano... Katsuya-nii..." The boy pointed beyond Katsuya's shoulder, coughing. Katsuya blinked, looking around as the others gave him an odd, raised eyebrow stare.

 

The hug was released with a nervous laugh and cough, Mokuba rolling his eyes. "Er... We did it~ Now yer si- Yer brother won't completely slaughter me when he gets up, ahaha..." As the others merely laughed in response, he turned back to Mokuba. They'd made it. They returned to normal...

 

As the others smiled back at him, Bakura thanking the others heavily for what they'd done (Not to mention apologizing even more), he had to silently thank whatever gods were watching them for getting out of that alive. He knew he wasn't going anywhere near this game for a while. A... LONG while, if anything. When the time finally came to leave Bakura gave each of them the figurines they'd had, the blond idly noting that they seemed to be smiling. As the others turned to leave however, he found himself picking up the 'Kai' figurine and turning to Bakura.

 

"Hey," he said quietly, the albino turning with a blink as Mokuba also followed him. "That 'archer' figurine..."

 

"Ah, that one..." Bakura picked it up, the figurine's large white wings gleaming in the light of the room. It was somehow still intact after all that had gone on after her 'death'. An impressive feat, truly. "I can't remember making a birdtail... Particularly not a female archer," he added with a small smile, handing it to Katsuya. "I'm not sure why," he continued, before smiling, "But I feel as though this is important to you two though," the albino said as he looked down at Mokuba a moment. "I think I'll give it to you."

 

Katsuya stood, silent for a moment as Mokuba looked up at the figurine. It was the boy who spoke first in the end, after the silence that came over from saying their good-byes and leaving the apartment. They were alone by this point, everyone having gone their separate ways by now. "Katsuya-nii," he said, the pair walking home in the partial darkness of the evening. "That figurine... That smile..."

 

He nodded, pulling it carefully out of his bag. The palm sized figurine sat cold on his hand, remaining light washing half of the features of the figure. "Yeah... I wouldn't know myself but..." The blond sighed, looking at the oddly uncharacteristic smile on the 'archer's face, before turning to Mokuba. "Hey Mokuba," he asked, eyes soft. "What yah said back there... When we were tryin' teh figure out 'Kai's name..." 'Kase' he'd said...Or maybe even 'Kaseri'? It hadn't been anything Yugi theorized, but he wondered if it was something which matched the characters regardless. It had seemed at the very least, that Yugi caught something when Mokuba had been laughing it off.

 

The boy merely 'hnn-ed', staring ahead. "It was nothing," he said, a little faster than normal maybe. "I really meant it... Naming something that flies after the wind just makes sense." The teen looked back at it, blinking. Well, he could hardly fault the kid's logic, but he doubted that was it. There wasn't any good reason he'd be able to push though.

 

Katsuya sighed, but decided to leave it as it was. Honestly, they'd dealt with enough that day. Probably best to leave things be. Instead, turning his attention to the road below, he changed the subject to something else. "Do y' think," he said, somewhat hesitantly as the boy beside him looked up. "Do you think that it was... Her?" As impossible as the question seemed, the boy's answer told him it had been on both their minds.

 

"...I..." Mokuba fell silent, before nodding, wiping a few stray tears at the thought of 'seeing' his sister again. "I don't think it was _all_ of her but..." He smiled, the pair falling partially silent as they continued off. The answer didn't need to be said after all. Regardless of the fact that it had obviously not been Kaiba, it had also been at least... A small part.

 

"Yeah... Me too..." A small piece of the puzzle, from inside her heart.

 


	20. Chapter 18 | Screens

 

When she woke up, her window was open.

 

Seto lay on the ground of the dark room, which was now mostly a faded grey. Light from above shone from her 'window', the woman merely staring upwards, blankly. She didn't know how much time was passing. She was just... Lying there. The sun was shining through her 'window', and now that it was late September, it was calming rather than harsh. "...My memories..." Had returned.

 

She knew... Almost knew who she was again. She could remember everything she'd lost... From the puzzle at least. And with her memories repaired, so was the golden, almost spherical device beside her. The woman managed to pull herself to her knees, staring at the 'new piece' with a frown. This piece... She grabbed it, the frown deepening. A fleeting memory of some sort of... Explosion? Was that what it was? And two faces... She could see two faces in the fogged memory, almost similar to the Mutt and her brother. And yet it couldn't be them...

 

The faces were too simple, too wrong. Enormous eyes painted onto a surface that literally shined in the light, these were just figurines, mock ups of their appearance. Nothing existed that could change her mind. Besides, she thought with a snort. She certainly didn't have whatever it was she saw in her shadow. Seto placed the piece into her puzzle, numbly standing up as she held it in her grip. As she stood there, she could hear Katsuya and Mokuba speaking. She couldn't find the strength to respond though, and even if she could it wasn't as though they could hear her right? Each day it felt more and more like there was no point...

 

Time was passing, and the pieces were few and far between. And yet the room was lighter... And the puzzle was almost done. Seto blinked, looking up as something drifted through the 'window'. 'Thank you', they were saying. Over and over again, they were saying it. Why were they thanking her? She didn't do anything, honestly. All she'd done for the past immeasurable amount of time was lay there in the darkness. Sleeping, suffocating... As she watched whatever it was being sent in drift forward, she found herself thinking of the 'ghost'. The white, smoking figure that appeared in this place...

 

The woman narrowed her eyes as she recalled the 'conversation', if it could be called that. 'Please. Help me...' "Tch... In the end, he knocked me out..." Typical. She didn't even know who it was, just how had that thing made it in here? Seto snorted, watching as whatever had come through landed with a clatter to the ground. A figurine... She picked it up, looking it over with a blank expression. Hn! Like the things she saw for a brief moment in her memory. Her eyes narrowed as she took in the details on the figurine's face, frowning. "Psh," she said with a scoff, holding the winged miniature in one hand as she crossed her arms. "As if I would be caught dead with that smile..."

 

Nonetheless her face softened as Katsuya continued to speak 'outside'. Really... This place made her too 'soft'. ' _Seto-chan... I don't know if you were really there but... Yah saved my life an' Mokuba's both.'_ Seto frowned, looking upwards. "What did I say about calling me that..." Whatever... He wasn't listening anyways. She'd just have to make sure she remembered to get him back for everything he said while she was here when she 'got out'. Idly, she looked back at the figurine. Saved them? She'd be more than willing to do that for her brother, but for the Mutt... Eh, maybe if she wasn't doing anything else. ' _Heck, prolly e'ryone's life... Thanks... F'r everythin'..._ ' Everyone?

 

Now that was pushing it. "...Moron," she said with half closed eyes as she allowed a small smile to creep on her face. The woman took a seat, still looking at the figure in her hands as she spoke. "You shouldn't need saving if you're on security." The figurine glowed a few moments, before becoming a puzzle piece as well. "...Hn..." Seemed to be a trend really... They'd 'give her' something and it'd be some piece with a menial if not possibly pointless memory in it. So far the only real exception to that had been her pendant... (Though she did like that dragon. A lot.) And as she placed it in, she found her smile remained on her face longer than she would have ever expected. Far longer actually, even if the memory was nothing but an open view of her backyard in the middle of the night. "...Hmp... Am I losing myself here," she wondered aloud, spinning the puzzle in her hands as the memory ended. "Or have I simply lost myself for too long..." There was no answer, as usual. But then, she didn't expect one this time.

 

* * *

 

In the end things fell back to 'normal' within a few days. Bakura's friends all over Tokyo regained consciousness, their souls freed of their prisons. Even the damn gym teacher Karita-sensei was freed, though he appeared to have no memories of the event- hell he came back the next _day_ , which certainly said something about his drive as a teacher. ' _You four,_ ' he'd shouted that morning, the teens rushing for the classroom. ' _You're late! You want a detention?!'_ Sheesh, after getting his body back too...

 

He wasn't even that good as villager 'D'...

 

Well, at least they'd been let off the hook in terms of that detention. Nothing like a bit of a break to calm things down. Immediately in the aftermath of course, Bakura had ended up waiting for an ambulance at his house. Technically, they'd all been there, hanging back at the building when they remembered the poor guy would need a cover.

 

The story was that they'd gotten _so_ excited over the game that Bakura had slammed his hand down... On the tower instead of the table. It seemed just a little too far-fetched of course, but really with so many 'witnesses' the doctors bought it, and within just a few days the white haired teen was back in school, left hand bandaged up more than a mummy. Thankfully, he was right handed... Katsuya sort of wished he'd had that option before, when he'd broken his arm. Regardless of how fast discharge had been though, he wouldn't be using the hand for a while.

 

From what they could tell he found it a perfectly fine 'price' after what had happened the nights before. The days following Bakura's return to class proceeded as expected from there... Mostly. Weeks had passed, even months, with the events in between blurring together no matter what the event. Though Katsuya did have to admit that Health and Sports day had been a little more interesting with Mokuba around- particularly with the three-legged race. By the end of _that_ particular day, they'd even managed to win one of the events! Resulting in Mokuba going home with a booster pack of duel monster cards. In the end, the boy had... Absolutely no clue what to do with them though, and he'd opted to give it, as well as a few other things, to his still 'sleeping' older sister once the 25th rolled around.

 

Times were flying... And Seto slept through it all. The amount of time that had really passed hadn't hit Katsuya for a while though, at least not until Bakura had come in, his hand completely healed at last. Though a large, slowly healing scab could still be seen within the boundaries of what would be an intense scar, the fact that nearly two months had already passed was incredible. Had it really gone so fast? Katsuya had shaken his head at that moment, instead watching as the teen carried in with him a clear box of sorts. ' _There's something I want to show you,_ ' he'd said, before uncovering the box. ' _I made it last night.'_

 

It was a large diorama, a castle scene- and a very well made one at that. The figures of the entire party they'd had in the Monster World, 'Kai' and 'Bakura' included were all reaching upwards with smiles on their faces. Briefly, Katsuya held back a laugh at the small smile that 'Kai' had. It wasn't a large grin like the others of course, as that would be a bit too much but... Well, seeing the expression on 'Kaiba's face was interesting. Even the other Yugi was there, holding a ten-sided die in his well detailed hand... With a small smirk on his face as well, of course. All in all, it was fairly well made...

 

As expected from Bakura's handiwork. ' _This diorama is a memento of that adventure,_ ' Bakura had said, smiling. ' _A symbol of our friendship when we fought together against the monsters! Let's play again someday...'_ Much as he wanted to say 'HEEEEEELLL NO', he ended up nodding and smiling anyways. It was the better thing to do, what with Bakura being Bakura. Quieter than Yugi, possibly just as 'innocent' until pushed to inhuman limits.

 

Definitely more polite than all of them put together! Besides, the other Bakura was gone now right? Dead and gone, and he wasn't ever coming back. Though the similarities of 'Egyptian Artifact with Other Self Inside' was a little creepy, when comparing that ring with the puzzle.

 

Mokuba had taken a bit to calm down after that day; he was just a little jumpy around the house, almost screaming when he'd come from behind to go into the kitchen. The last few weeks however he seemed to finally be over it, calming down to his regular persona. In fact, he'd asked him the next week if he could pick him up from school and walk with him rather than go by car. Apparently the boy was becoming rather fond of the walks, given how often he'd been taking them. Katsuya supposed they were alright too, what with the silence of his own trips to school being somewhat broken on the way back now. It was more than a little upsetting after all, when security had been 'heightened' to the point that anyone else they knew couldn't enter the house. Hell, they were lucky they weren't on house arrest from what he could tell! Having friends over would have been madness.

 

Walking down the street however, his mind was turned to other things. More recent things, specifically. In Katsuya's hand was a deck of duel monster cards, and the blond was scowling. The game had recently picked up considerably in popularity, and at the moment it wasn't at all uncommon for most of the class to duel during breaks at school. However... "Augggghh..." Mokuba looked up as the teen grumbled over his cards, the pair taking a break from the walk back home to sit down. As to where they were really, who knew. All he knew was it was some wall that was low enough for even the shorter of the two to hop up on for a seat. "I jus' don' get what I'm doin' wrong here!"

 

The boy blinked, peeking over his arm at the cards before grinning. "Pbbbbbtt... I think I can guess!" As Katsuya leveled a fairly unimpressed stare at him, he continued laughing. "Your entire deck is made of monsters! You can't work with that!" Oddly enough, Yugi had said the same thing- but he had to turn down the offer to invite him over to rebuild his deck thanks to his shift for work... Damn it.

 

He huffed, folding the cards back up before turning to Mokuba. "Alright then smart guy, then what exactly should I be workin' with?" Lets compare answers here... And maybe he'd have enough spare change to actually move on it.

 

"Well, it's a strategy game! You're supposed to combine monsters with spell and trap cards Katsuya-nii!" He rolled his eyes, still snickering as the teen muttered something about being told twice. "Otherwise, your opponent can easily dodge all the monsters!" Even though they're cards...

 

Granted he did tend to lose to spells and traps all the time. Katsuya stared, visibly frowning at the words. He... He and Yugi had a really good point didn't he... "Nhhhh... I need t' figure out some decent strategies huh..."

 

The boy grinned, nodding his head as they continued walking again. "Yep! You know," he said with a grin, "You could probably get some ideas watching the duel monsters finals tomorrow... I'm not good at the game myself, not like n-" He cut himself off, sighing. "Not like 'her'..." Mokuba turned to the ground, the good mood fading. It was the week before December after all. And if Kaiba had slept through her birthday, there was a good chance of it persisting into Christmas.

 

He winced, before ruffling the boy's hair a bit. "Hey... She'll wake up soon, alrigh'? Guarantee it." It seemed that since 'Kai's appearance in the Monster World, Mokuba had been getting more and more depressed about the 'zoned out' woman. The vegetative state had refused to let up, and if things kept going the way they were... Christmas and New Years were the least of their worries. "I promise yah." Didn't know how to fix it, but it was a promise he would keep. No matter how pointless it seemed.

 

It was about as gloomy as his own sister's condition; she could still see, but give it a few weeks... Well, she was due to lose all sight by February according to his mother- Shizuka herself had refused to say otherwise. Mokuba looked up at the blond, nodding. "Y-Yeah... Hey," the boy said, giving a nervous smile. "Yugi's Grandpa owns a game shop right?" Without waiting for a response, he continued. "Why don't we go there tomorrow to watch the finals? You could get some cards at the same time!" Mokuba at Yugi's house? That was new.

 

"Hnn..." He blinked, before nodding with a smile. "Yeah! That sounds good t' me!" Well, at least Mokuba's dislike for Yugi seemed to have decreased with the 'Monster World' fiasco. If anything, the boy was completely fine with him now. Well.

 

Mostly. Mentioning Kaiba seemed to gain about the same effect around Yugi as it did Mokuba, with the only difference being that the former was completely drenched in guilt on the topic. "I'll meetcha there, alr- Wait," Katsuya muttered with a frown, turning back to the kid. "I thought I had work t'morrow..."

 

They continued walking back, Mokuba now smiling a little more genuinely. "Eh, consider it a day off! I'll have Hobson cover for you!" As Katsuya nodded in response to that ('Alright, sounds good...'), the boy scratched his head, frowning "...Though... I might be a little late, alright? I kinda got a detention..." He flushed, rubbing his head. "Pretty stupid..." If not for the fact that it wasn't something to be proud of, he'd probably say he was. At last, Mokuba doing something that was on the scale of normal kids getting in trouble! (Unlike Death-T... Hihhh...)

 

Wait, how did Mokuba... Another blink, before Katsuya smirked. Well, no better time to ask really! "A detention? Whad'ya do?"

 

The boy snorted, crossing his arms. "Nothing... Just ran late for class..." Late for class. Yeah, he could see that. Made sense too, Mokuba wasn't the type to go around being a delinquent. (That was his job. And he'd lightened up.) Doesn't matter really..." He trailed off, before grinning. Home stretch to the house now, and in the currently glaring sun they could see the walls of Kaiba Mansion. "Come on, we're going to miss supper, alright?"

 

"Nyh, what?" Katsuya watched as Mokuba already disappeared a few meters ahead, running full tilt. "Oi! Get back here!" He charged after the boy, soon catching up as a somewhat 'rigged' game of tag came about. "Oi!" As they ran, Katsuya couldn't help but welcome the wave of normalcy that had settled over them. Things were finally set in place, no crazy mummies, no homicidal penalty game rumors... And while it was hard waiting, Seto seemed to be getting better day by day; the feeding tube was removed, and the woman seemed to have longer and longer periods of 'wakefulness' (Regardless of the fact that her eyes were clearly dead). In fact, she'd kept her eyes open almost a full day once. (Though that was creepy...)

 

Personally, Katsuya figured it'd be about a week before she woke up. Though he didn't want to say anything only to bring Mokuba's hopes up. After all... Given what happened when she'd first hit the vegetative state, and the fact that Mokuba was getting along with Yugi, to the point where he had recommended spending an evening at the kid's house... Well, he'd find out just how 'well' that was going tomorrow, but still. Things were looking up! Really looking up, and if the boy's behaviour was any sign, Mokuba was feeling better as well! At least...

 

He'd thought that.

 

But the next day, sitting outside Yugi's house, Mokuba never showed up. In the end Sugoroku had called him inside for some food, telling him that the duels were already on screen. He'd called shortly before the finals began, already sitting with Anzu, Yugi, and his grandfather. He'd called in only to be told by one of the newer maids that Mokuba had come home an hour ago and was working on homework. And when he asked to speak to him...

 

' _Forgive me Jonouchi-kun, but Mokuba-sama is just too busy to come to the phone! They really loaded him with work today... I recommend you enjoy the rest of your evening off instead, things will be better tomorrow._ ' And then she'd hung up, Katsuya standing there with a dead line. It kinda hurt... Yeah the kid had homework, he got that, but it was Friday! He had the entire weekend, he knew that...

 

Couldn't he have called or something, rather than having a maid tell him, a maid that he had to call? In the back of his mind, he wondered if something had gone wrong. If Mokuba's greatest fears had come true, whatever they might have been. That this was all a set up, that if he didn't hurry back to the house...

 

But as Anzu shushed everyone, the show beginning, he ended up just taking one of the cookies beside him and munching it idly. Nothing was wrong. Nothing, things were too calm to go wrong. "This is kinda exciting," Anzu was saying, drinking a can of chilled tea. "I never thought watching card games would get me this hyped up!"

 

Yugi nodded, currently holding a package he'd received in the mail earlier. The box itself was about half the size of the boy, making an interesting image. "Of course! This decides the number one player in Japan after all!" Number one huh... He knew someone who would (probably could) argue that.

 

At this, Katsuya blinked and turned to the boy. "Hey Yugi," he asked, swallowing a bite of his cookie. "How come you didn' enter? I mean, you could'a gone all th' way!" Like all the way. As in championship title.

 

"Yeah," he said, looking down sadly. "But I made a decision," the boy continued, smiling weakly. "When I enter a tournament again, it'll be to fight 'him'..."

 

Katsuya blinked, before nodding. "Kaiba..." It took a second before 'him' registered as 'Kaiba'... He'd kinda gotten used to saying 'she' in his mind, even 'Seto' for that matter, though if he wasn't careful he'd probably pay for that soon. It was probably just him, but it felt almost like Yugi had hesitated with the word as well. The boy nodded, grinning.

 

"Yeah! This time, fair and square; that's my dream!" He turned to Katsuya, the smile disappearing. "That reminds me... I hear Kaiba's still..." He coughed, shifting awkwardly. Right... Kaiba had become a 'forbidden' topic of sorts really, so it was no surprise that only now... "I mean, ever since he was moved from the hospital, I haven't been able to visit..."

 

"Yeah," the blond said, nodding. Honestly, Yugi deserved to know in his opinion; after all, his other self had been the one to do it right? So he should know how the lady was doing. "He's still sittin' at a 'vegetative state' or whatever it's called..." He surprised himself with how much he knew about the state of being just by working at that house. "So yeah," he added, looking at the ground a moment. "...There's no change..."

 

There was an awkward silence, and Anzu seemed to stare off with distant eyes. "That man..." She screwed her eyes shut, shaking her head. "Even if he comes back, I still can't trust him..." The others turned, Katsuya blinking. A few months ago... He'd think the roles would be reversed. Anzu was the trusting one. The one with unending faith that was only topped by Yugi's... "I'll never be able to trust him!" Felt almost like he'd been thrown into the twilight zone or whatever it was called just now. He and Yugi swallowed nervously, each of them turning back to face the screen. The silence returned for a good few minutes, only broken by a cheering crowd from the Duel Monster finals on screen.

 

"For the thousands of duel monsters fans across the country," An announcer stated cheerily, Katsuya glad for something to distract him. "It all comes down to THIS moment!" The final round had begun!

 

He grinned, leaning back on his hands as he watched. Here it went! And just as quickly as it started, it was over. 'Dinosaur Ryuuzaki' played a 'Two-headed Rex', 'Insector Haga' played a trap, and attacked directly. Haga won, and Katsuya had to mentally groan as he caught the point Mokuba had been making about using spells and traps. Damn it... He was taken from his thoughts however when he heard the name 'Pegasus J. Crawford' on screen. "Hn..."

 

The CEO of I2 made mention of another tournament (visibly making Haga wonder why he'd bothered with this one), Katsuya narrowing his eyes in reply. Pegasus... Regardless of what he saw of the guy, the way that he was hounding Mokuba and the rest of KaibaCorp had him on edge. Who would

have guessed he'd even be this worked up about 'company warfare'? Admittedly, it was his first time seeing the man- between the over exaggeration of their motions, and the way his hair was styled, it wasn't quite what he'd pictured while overhearing Company Drama.

 

He was pulled from those thoughts as the show hit the credits, conversation starting up behind them. "Insector Haga eh," Yugi's grandfather was saying, hand to his chin. "Can't say I'm surprised..."

 

Yugi grinned, nodding. "Me neither! But it sure was a great duel!" If only it lasted more than two turns... He knew that cards were coming out with better attack power and such, but seriously, two turns?

 

Regardless he found himself grinning as well, nodding in unison. "Yeah! It was like Osaka VS Tokyo!" Well... Shizuka had bragged earlier about Ryuuzaki being from Osaka... And Haga WAS from Tokyo... There. No one could make fun of what he had just said. It wasn't 'just', it WAS.

 

The boy laughed, shaking his head. "See what Mokuba and I were saying? Even the strongest monster can't stand against a good combo!" Yeah yeah, he got it! He continued grinning, nodding. Mokuba had missed the battle... Probably buried to his nose in class work at that very moment in fact. While it was really upsetting that he wasn't there right now, he decided he might as well enjoy the night off that he'd been given for the event (Rather, for the duelist finals).

 

"Yeah! Yugi, you think you could help me out with my deck?" That was kind of the reason he'd come there right? Besides all the other obvious things.

 

"Of course!" As Yugi moved to get a few cards to show the blond some tips, he was stopped by his grandfather. The man coughed, pointing over to the box that Yugi had been holding.

 

"Before you do that Yugi," he began, placing a pair of scissors on the box. "I'd like to know what's in this package... The lack of return address is making me rather nervous!" Well, it _was_ a big package... Was it just him though, or did everything make Sugoroku nervous? (Then again, even with how long it had been since Death-T, that made sense.)

 

Katsuya blinked as the boy nodded, scratching his head. "Well, we can play after this," he said as he cut the tape, slowly opening the box. "Heh... W-What the..?" The blond stared, eyebrow raised. A tape, two star-shaped chips and... A glove that the two chips could easily fit into. All surrounded completely by packaging peanuts. And lots of them. The tape itself was rather small. It was an 8 millimeter tape, meant for video cameras. As to whether or not anyone had anything to play it with...

 

"Hnn..." He picked the tape up, looking over at Yugi. "We'll probably get th' explanation from this tape... Oi, Yugi," he said with a neutral gaze. "You have an 8MM player?" The boy nodded, moving to connect it to the TV . "Alright... Let's see what we get..." Figured that Yugi would have one of these. Granted, so did Kaiba, but that was just for the camera feed...

 

The tape went in, and he reeled back in shock as Pegasus appeared on screen. "Hello~," the silver haired man called, Katsuya blinking as the video played. "At last we meet, Yugi-boy~ It's a pleasure!" If.. Meeting could be called video messaging...

 

"T-That's..." As the others stared in shock, he shook his head. "What th' hell... Why th' heck is Pegasus contactin' yah?" Not only was it really. _Weird_ that he'd do that but... Pegasus was raring after a company right now, not a single duelist..! Granted, he was holding a tournament in a small bit, so scouting out potential competitors could always be the reason, but...

 

Pegasus shook his head, smiling. "No no, don't be so surprised," he said, before folding his hands together. "I just wanted to send a video letter to the esteemed Yugi-boy, the _real_ champion!" Katsuya found himself narrowing his eyes at the tape as the others watched. 'Video letter'... Now why bother with that? Though he had to hand it to Pegasus for pointing Yugi out as that 'champion'. "I understand you are extremely skilled at Duel Monsters," the man continued, grinning. "After all... You defeated Kaiba-boy! Good job, well done.. _Wonderful_ ," he shouted, the blond tensing at the mention of Kaiba. And of course...

 

There was always that link. Pegasus and Kaiba worked side by side for the hologram technology, they had to; one had the tech, the other had the cards. And now that Kaiba was comatose...

 

"Now then, lets get down to business, alright Yugi-boy? I want to test your skills right here and now!" And he was going to do that how..? (What was with the constant use of 'boy'..? Weird Americans...) "I challenge you to face this video recording of me at duel monsters!" Again. how was he going to do that? The statement was voiced by the boy's grandfather, before Pegasus picked up a card deck and continued. Then again, it was a tape, so that couldn't be taken as ignoring him. Right? He just assumed Yugi would hop right into it, probably... "Alright? Build your deck in front of the monitor, and we'll begin in five minutes."

 

Yugi nodded, moving forwards with the cards he'd pulled out to play Katsuya with. "Okay," he said with a nod, pulling his deck together. "I'll take this challenge!" Katsuya blinked as the boy moved forwards to face the screen, mentally shaking his head. Well... On one hand, if this worked that would be insanely cool... On the other, he decided as he moved to the side to watch...

 

Why did he have the nasty feeling that this could only end badly?

 

* * *

 

Sometimes, he really hated his luck. Not to mention the paranoid thoughts that had gotten the bad habit of tugging at his mind for almost the past year.

 

The match between Yugi and Pegasus... It had worked. And it ended _badly_. Though about half way through he'd mentally wondered if he should get himself a dragon capture jar if it became available before Kaiba woke up... Provided he had the funds of course. (He wouldn't.)

 

It was an... Interesting bet. Lose, and take place in the tournament, which didn't sound too bad at first (Granted it was also completely asshole-ish when combined with Yugi's earlier promise to Kaiba)... Key words being 'at first'. Apparently, as he found out after Pegasus used a time limit to 'win', lose also translated to 'have the soul of someone close taken' as well. Did he say interesting?

 

He meant shitty.

 

Yeah, they could still talk to him. He was sealed in the tape, and as they awkwardly discovered in a fit of desperation that followed, said tape could be carried around in a video camera for continuous communication. So really aside from the initial creepy factor and the ambulance that took the old man's body away, he was 'alright'. The prospect of sealed souls however had only served as a grim reminder of Seto's condition and the earlier events of the 'Monster World' as he walked through the mansion gates that night however. Katsuya entered the house, only an hour having passed since the end of the tournament battle; it was 9:30 when he got in, the sky completely black and most of the lights in the house already turned off.

 

Mokuba was probably in bed by now if he was listening to Isono... So really, he might as well just head to his own room and attempt to get some homework out of the way to play with him in the morning. Speaking of Mokuba... He didn't want to think that the maid he'd spoken with was wrong, but the first thing he did after putting his stuff up in the coat room was set off to find a maid he actually _knew_. He didn't have to look far however, as the moment he'd turned down a hall to look for the woman (What was her name, 'Kyouko'?) he was hurriedly pulled into a closet by said maid.

 

"Nye- What?" Ignoring the fact that whoever was watching the cameras was having a good laugh right now... What was Kyouko doing? The maid held a finger to her lips, a panicked expression on her face.

 

"Shh! Keep quiet please... It took all I could to find a room without surveillance please listen!" The blond blinked, a few times in fact, before frowning.

 

"No surveil... What th' hell do yah mean?"

 

She bit her lip, taking a few deep breaths. "Jonouchi-kun," she began slowly, still attempting to regain her breath. It was quite obvious that she was flustered, and from the expression on her face something really, really bad had- "Mokuba-sama never returned from school today..." Happened.

 

Waitwaitwait...

 

WHAT? "What... What th' hell do you mean," he hissed, barely keeping his voice down. "I called earlier t'day an' they told me he was here, doin' homework!" ...Told by one of the maids that the BOARD had hired..! God damn it why was _hindsight_ the one that was perfect! "He.. He's here," he muttered, shaking his head. "He has to be.."

 

"No..." She shook her head, still breathing heavily. "That isn't what happened at all... I don't know why no one else has made a move to call in authorities, or at least try and search but..." The maid chocked, before slowly regaining her composure. "Jonouchi-kun... These new staffing arrangements," she whispered with a pale face, as though realizing just now what had everyone so worried. "I don't think it had anything to do with getting rid of moles... I mean..." Kyouko continued to shake, holding her head. "I knew that there had to be some reason why Mokuba-sama gave me those papers but... I..." As the woman cut off, Katsuya just about felt everything shatter. No...

 

Oh god no...

 

Stumbling out of the closet to head for his room, Kasuya grew immeasurably pale, gripping the doorknob to his room tightly. Who cared if Seto was going to slaughter him. He'd slaughter _himself_ the teen told himself as he slid down the side of the door with his head in his hands. He could have easily gone to get him from school, told the principal to 'screw the detention, deal with it' but- His eyes widened, fists clenching with realization. The detention... Mokuba said he'd been late for class but...

 

Oh fucking _hell_ could it go that far?!

 

As Katsuya lay back on his bed he couldn't find the will to sleep. Mokuba was kidnapped... And he'd brushed it off thinking everything was fine. He'd actually believed that the kid he'd spent most of the year getting close to had just dumped him for homework, when he hadn't done that once since school started up again. Not once. He should have known...

 

He should have...

 

Was this what Seto felt like, he wondered as he rolled over to his side in the bed. Before Gozaburo had done whatever it was that made her what she was before the coma? Was this what she felt like when Mokuba was in danger? He didn't know. He'd only been a kid when he and Shizuka were separated, so he didn't know...

 

The closest thing he could think was when Yugi had been strung up like a hanged man back in September, but while it was the same on some levels, on others it simply didn't even compare. This feeling...

 

He wanted it to stop so bad...

 

* * *

 

The tape he got in the mail the next morning didn't help matters. If anything it made things a thousand times worse, simply strengthening his fears. Besides the fact that it came with the same glove Yugi's did- With no starchips, he noted- it arrived without any address, in a box almost identical to the one that his friend had received. Katsuya swallowed as he sat in the security feed room, plugging in the 8MM player with relative ease. He was alone...

 

And hopefully it'd stay that way. But honestly, he doubted that if no one close to him was in the room any souls would be stolen. ...It was sad how normal that seemed. "Alrigh... Here goes nothin..." He popped the tape in, locking the door as he dulled the volume slightly on the other video screens. Yeah, he could get fired for this but...

 

Something told him that the conscious people remaining didn't really give a damn about Kaiba's security right now. The first few seconds of snow kicked in... And his eyes widened.

 

"Niihan," Shizuka said as she waved on the screen. Her glasses were gone now, vision having deteriorated too much for them to really do a thing. Most likely... All she could see was haze. "How are you doing? I decided to send you a video letter! You don't have an e-mail, so I can't use a webcam... It's not quite the same, but even this will work right?" Sh-Shizuka...

 

Pegasus had _intercepted a mail from Shizuka_ and...

 

Katsuya grew pale as his sister smiled, the girl leaning forward to adjust the camera slightly. "Katsuya-niihan... This summer was so fun... Spending time with you, and Mokuba-kun..." She sniffed, a few tears developing. "It was good to see you, at least one last time!" As the blond watched, frozen, the girl in the tape continued. "Niihan... Thank you, for everything... Even though I won't see it again... I'll always remember your face! ...That's all... Take care of yourself, nii-san!" The camera filled with static again, before slowly fading to another image. He'd intercepted it and...

 

" _Hnhnhnhnhn_..." Katsuya's eyes widened as he stared at the screen in horror, chuckling filling the room. He grit his teeth as Pegasus' image appeared on the television, almost turning the video off right then. "An interesting thing," the man said with a 'charming' laugh, eye narrowed. "As I looked for a reason to coerce dear Yugi-boy into my competition, perhaps even Kaiba-boy as well when he woke up, I found out just where my little Key Holder vanished off to during the summer..." As the man continued chuckling, Katsuya grew pale. The key...

 

Mokuba had given him a key that summer. Mokuba had insisted on giving him the key, during the vacation he'd insisted they go alone on, without letting anyone other than Isono know of his whereabouts. He'd insisted, with the same determined, semi-angered semi-frightened tone of voice he'd heard from the boy's sister months before from behind a bathroom stall... The voice that he had of course, passed off in anger rather than the latter. Still did in Seto's case actually...

 

"Well... Who knows where he's gone now," Pegasus said with a narrowed eye and an eerie smile. Who knew... He had a feeling he knew alright... "But it seems to me that you've been given something important to me..." The blond's eyes widened, and he kicked the counter to push his wheeled-chair as far back from the screen as possible. This guy read minds? Well!

 

He'd make sure that he didn't have the chance! Gripping the support pillar at the back of the room, he watched as the Pegasus on screen gave a false pout. Come on... Please let this have worked...

 

Pegasus sighed, shaking his head. "Ahh... And it seems you've moved out of my range..." Thank. God. Yet he smiled, eye narrowing again. "Not that it matters... I might not know where, Doggy-boy," Hang on what? DOGS AGAIN? "But I know you have it... So I'm going to make you a little proposition..." His eye narrowed further, seemingly looking towards the box and glove on the ground. "All competitors receive a glove and two starchips," the man explained, folding his hands. "However 'Doggy-boy', you were not meant to be a member of the competition... Not _really_ at least." He smirked, and continued on, unable to now see the glare Katsuya sent back at the 'dog' comment. "I've sent you a glove... But only the 'real' competitors receive the chips and cards required for entry!" Tch... His teeth ground ever more, the blond still clutching the support pillar tightly.

 

What was he trying to pull!

 

"It's up to you," Pegasus stated, cruel smile in place. "Beg your dear friend Yugi-boy for half of his entrance, cheating your way into the competition for the possible prize that could save your darling sister and... 'friend'... Or," he added with an even more menacing smile. "Leave it, and wait for someone to find your rusting key holder... Either way," he said as the image faded out to static once more. "I'm waiting..." The tape was ejected from the screen, and Katsuya sat there, frozen.

 

Slowly he reached under his shirt, pulling out the key he had in the pendant box. He knew... He knew he had this. Maybe not where, but the fact remained _he knew._ The blond gripped it in his hands, biting his lip. Yugi... He had to talk to him. Damn it, he didn't want to drag him into all this and yet... This was his only hope. Mokuba's only hope, even Shizuka's only hope... And as an offshoot of Mokuba, it was Seto's chance too- this was her company after all... And her brother. This key... He didn't know what it lead to, but whatever it was had to hold some sort of importance. So many people...

 

Riding on...

 

Him.

 

Him of all people! Since when had he been the go-to-guy for anything! Why... Why... If he'd never met Mokuba, never taken Kaiba up on that 'reward'... He couldn't even comprehend the paths he would have taken instead of the one he was on. Regardless of what could have been however, there was only one thing to do. He stood up from the chair, ejecting the tape and tossing it back in the box he'd been sent. One thing...

 

And only one. The papers were filled. He knew that it'd be troublesome in the end, at least when he got back, but he could afford a 'week' off. He only worked for a few days of it after all, weekend included. Hobson was filled in, as was Isono, and Kyouko. Not on everything of course... Hell, if he said everything there was a chance that things would end up that much worse. He left it at one thing. He was going to be gone for a while, and that was that. They seemed to get the hint anyways, allowing him the next weekend off provided he finish off this one without an argument. They were on the same side, right? So why ask? His cards were prepared, box stowed away under his bed. All that was left was...

 

This. He stood there, 'uniform' on as he took his last shift. Here. Seto's room. One full day had gone by, and there were minutes before the night shift began. He would sleep through that, and leave for school in the morning. This was the end of his 'last shift'. Katsuya faced the woman, whose eyes were shut as she lay on the bed in her usual eerie silence. The room hadn't changed much. It was still mostly made up of elaborate furnishings, closet to one side bathroom to the other. Bookshelf in the corner filled with English titles he more or less didn't understand, and not a single picture or 'toy' in sight... Save for the side table.

 

It sat beside the bed, on the far corner of the room. He didn't know when it had started accumulating things. Maybe it was after the trip to Osaka, when he and Mokuba bought an extra mask and fan. ' _Hey_ ,' he'd said, grabbing one from the stands. ' _A fox mask! How do I look? '_

 

_'Like a dog_ ,' Mokuba had said, laughing. The boy had gotten his own mask, a tiger of sorts... And then spotted a dragon one. Or maybe it was when he had saved up enough for a camera, and started going crazy with it, taking shots of Mokuba and his friends whenever he could. ' _Katsuya-nii,_ ' he could remember the kid saying, ' _Make sure at least one of these goes in Nii-sama's room, ok? I don't think they have any pictures of anyone really..!_ ' Perhaps it went to the day he'd made that clay dragon, or some other day even, who knew!

 

The mask was put on the table, with the promise to bring the woman to the festival next time around. The pictures were framed and set up with promises of spending time at all the places in them, and with all the people involved (regardless of what she said about those people). There was also the clay statue of blue-eyes he'd made, followed by a level 5 'cap mon' Mokuba found that happened to look similar to the dragon, accompanied by promise after promise after promise...

 

Pictures were of more often than not Mokuba of course. Even so there were a few of Katsuya himself, and even Yugi and the others (Though Katsuya didn't think Seto would leave it there when she woke up)... And finally standing at the side was the 'Kai' figurine from the Monster World game. He couldn't recall a 'promise' being attached to that one. Just a thank-you, and a pile of wishes. Katsuya turned from the table as those thoughts faded out, looking at the woman with sad eyes.

 

"Seto-chan," he said softly, refusing to take a seat. He'd stood there the entire day really. He wasn't sure how, but he had. He hadn't said a word either. But now, even as the camera picked up on his moving lips and morose position, he needed to say his good-byes. "...I know... You'll probably do everything in your power to slaughter me when yah wake up..." He paused, biting his lip. "But I'm only lettin' yah do that after I've done that myself..." And only then, he decided with a sigh. "Mokuba's gone... Snatched off from school with out me ev'n noticin'..." He swallowed, shaking his head. "But I know who did it," he added, clenching his fists. "An' I'm goin' after him with all I've got... But for 'is sake, I want you tah get better! I want yah teh wake up for him, even if he ain't here, got it? Cause he needs yah, Seto-chan... More than anythin', he needs yah..."

 

Another chocked sigh, and the blond got down on his knees. Rubbing his face, his arms eventually came to rest on the side of the bed as he continued to speak. "'M gonna get 'im out. Ev'n if it kills me, understand... 'Kaseri-chan'?" He gave a sad smile, shaking his head. "I don' know if that's what your name was, b'fore all that orphanage, crossdressin' buisness... Thought I'd take a guess, see how it sounded," the blond said idly. "...Y'know," he continued. "E'en though it's a girl's name an all, it doesn't suit ya... In th' end, I like Seto-chan alot more..." He gave a quiet laugh, before looking over the woman's still unmoving face. Quiet...

 

And calm. So different from when she was 'awake'... "Sometimes, I gotta wonder... All this magic an' soul-stealin' crap goin' on... Makes me wonder if those stories like 'Sleepin' Beauty' an' 'Snow White' were based on real things..." He stood, blushing slightly as he looked at the woman. Sleeping Beauty and Snow White... They were in a 'deep sleep', almost coma-like, broken because of a kiss... right? He coughed, rolling the thoughts in his head as the blush deepened. 'The last piece,' the figurine counterpart had said. 'For her sake...' "N-Nyyyh..." Katsuya scratched his cheek, a cherry red as he continued to stare at the woman. It... Couldn't mean him though right? In the end, the figurine had also said 'don't die, both of you'... And that had to mean something. Yet... "I wonder..." He leaned over the bed slowly, swallowing nervously. His heartbeat sounded akin to a jack-hammer in his mind, and idly he wondered what would happen. Hell... He knew she wasn't dead but... Well...

 

Damn it, once he'd made that comparison, it just couldn't go away could it? "...Please don' kill me f'r this..." He bent over, swallowing again... And lightly, nervously, the teen's lips brushed over the girl's own cold lifeless ones. They were held there only a second, his eyes closed. And then he pulled back just slightly, opening his eyes to look at the face that would otherwise have seemed to belong a peaceful, sleeping young woman.

 

Rather than a victim of a coma that lasted over half a year.

 

It was a sad kiss... His first kiss really, and part of him wondered if this would count as a 'real one' anyways. Then again, he wouldn't likely get one otherwise. Katsuya stood there a few moments before slowly pulling back, completely red. "I..." He coughed, looking at the clock as his 'shift' ended. Maybe it was for the best. That she not remember all of this. It felt better to talk to her but really, would she bother with him when this was over? "I gotta go... ...Seto-chan," he said, as he headed for the door, looking back one last time. "...No matter what... I'll get 'm back! It's a promise!"

 

Sunday's shift was over and done. This would be the last time he came in without Mokuba. Katsuya didn't know what he'd expected when he left the room... If he wanted Seto to wake up, or if it was better she sleep now. If he'd deluded himself with thoughts of the past few months into thinking that maybe, like in western fairy tales things would turn out 'happy' at the end. But all that aside...

 

He would keep his promise, no matter what.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome everyone to the end of the 'First Arc'! (I'd made the mistake of assuming the next chapter would be that, but while reformatting it realized that was far from the case). 'Skein' will continue of course- I've got much more to finish reformatting and writing- so keep your eye out for the first reuploaded chapter of Skein | The Duelist Kingdom!


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